Spectacular spiderman season three: the ballad of peter parker
by dick grayson the boy wonder
Summary: We pick off after Norman Osborne was killed at the hands of his own grenades. Harry believes Spiderman is to blame, Peter has just broken up with Liz to get together with Gwen. But with Harry more alone than ever, Gwen has to stay by his side. Peter feels abandoned but his hardships are far from over. There is no escape from treachery, deceit and the criminal underworld of new york
1. Chapter 1

**We pick off after Norman Osborne was killed at the hands of his own grenades. Harry believes Spiderman is to blame, Peter has just broken up with Liz to get together with Gwen. But with Harry more alone than ever, Gwen has to stay by his side. Peter is left to protect New York from new foes, from treachery, deceit and even from himself...**

Peter shot a web and did a backflip as he landed in the janitor's closet window. Midtown high magnet school, home sweet home? Peter thought. At least there aren't any villains here, Peter wondered. He removed his red and blue costume to reveal his shirt and brown pants. Just in time for-the bell rang cutting Peter's thoughts off . Late for bio AGAIN! Peter ran out to find his class. As Peter entered the class, he noticed immediately something was wrong. Gwen was sitting in her seat so was Liz (still avoiding eye contact)- so what wrong? Harry. Harry wasn't sitting in his seat next to Gwen, in fact he wasn't in the room. It's not like Harry to come late. unless... "Hey Pete" two familiar blue eyes stared into his. "Hi Gwen, have you heard from harry?" Pete asked as he took a seat. Gwen shook her head as she brushed her hair behind her ear. The lesson began but Peter couldn't concentrate. Harry must be using the gobulin green again, Pete frowned. Harry can't find spiderman so I guess i'm in the safe zone... for now, Peter thought. Peter didn't remember what happened that day, all he knew was he would find harry. Peter ran out of school as the bell rang but someone held his arm. "Do you want to find harry, I'm worried about him" Gwen said. This was a job for only spiderman Peter's mind told him. "I'll go myself, you get home" Peter said with a steel expression. Gwen made a confused face and nodded. Peter couldn't believe it was that easy, maybe because he was so intent on finding Harry, Gwen sensed it. Either way Peter walked out of the courtyard and into an alleyway. Checking both ways, Peter put on his red and blue spiderman costume. He felt a chill go down his spine, he felt it each time he put the suit on, this wasn't just a costume, it was Peter's duty. He kept shooting webs and traveling through the city until he arrived at the osborne mansion. Peter saw no one inside. Let me check the "wine cellar" Peter thought. He activated the secret door and sure enough, there was a flight of stairs. At the bottom of the stairs, Harry was lying unconscious in... a green goblin costume. Peter was shocked, revenge rang in Peter's head. Peter instantly knew Harry would stop at nothing to get revenge. Peter bent over and noticed a green liquid next to Harry's body. Gobulin green. There was a vial Harry held in his hand. That's where the green came from, Peter thought. Harry opened his eyes and grabbed Peter holding him against the wall. "You have some nerve coming here!" Harry yelled. Peter struggled to talk but managed to say "Harry, he died at the hands of his own trap". "You're a liar!" harry screamed and punched Peter in the face. Peter pushed Harry away from him but Harry pressed a button on his suit. Peter's spider senses told him a glider hummed from behind Harry. "Harry I didn't kill him, I swear!" Peter screamed. The glider flew from behind Harry but Harry sidestepped. The glider hit Peter in the chest and continued to fly. It stopped abruptly, causing Peter to break through a glass window. Peter grabbed onto the ledge of the balcony. Props to the maintenance crew, this balcony was destroyed a few days ago, Peter thought. No time for jokes, Peter thought as he climbed up. A boot rammed into Peter's face as his spider sense went off. Peter flailed wildly trying to grab onto something but all to no avail. Harry was on his glider but Peter was falling fast. How does Harry know how to fly it? Peter thought. He shot a web at the mansion but Harry threw a blade and cut it instantly. Must be an effect of the gobulin green peter thought. The wind screamed into Peters ears and Harry flew down cutting each web Peter shot. Hey that's norman osborne's move Peter thought. "Harry you're not thinking straight, the gobulin green is getting to your head! There is some sort of side effect, remember the blackouts!" Peter yelled. I need to be careful as to avoid revealing too much information. Harry said "Shut up you wouldn't know! ". Pete didn't recognize this voice. It's not Harry's voice, is Harry still there? Peter mused. No time to think, Peter realized, he was yards away from hitting the pavement. Peter shot a web at Harry's eyes. Great distraction Peter thought as he shot a web at a building and one at Harry's legs. Peter pulled Harry off the glider as harry was clawing off the webs. Peter covered harry in webs as he swung him on top off a skyscraper. They both landed but Harry rolled in webs. "Harry, I can never bring myself to kill, it's not my fault you father died" Peter said. "My father meant everything to me" Harry sobbed. "But you didn't mean everything to him", Peter said. Harry stopped struggling. "How would you know!" Harry screamed. Peter thought to himself, should he show harry, the man behind the mask? Peter didn't know what to think. "Harry what if I told you Norman Osborne was changed by his formula, he was hungry for power. Norman Osborne was a man who never admitted his mistakes, never apologized. I'm sorry, you can't look up to him" Peter said. Suddenly Harry jumped out of the webs, he swung with a blade in his hand. Peter ducked and spun. Peter spun counter clockwise and kicked the back of Harry's legs. Harry fell to the floor. Peter shot a web at the blade in Harry's hand and Peter pulled as hard as he could. This sent the blade flying off the roof top. Harry stood up and kicked Peter in the stomach, then Harry punched Peters face. Harry was going to punch Peter in the stomach but Peter held Harry's fist. "Harry, Norman Osborne didn't care for you as much as he should have. If he really cared, then why did he become a villain?, why didn't he tell you anything?! Why was he never proud of you?" Peter said. Harry tried to punch Peter again but Peter held that fist too. Harry frowned "My father wasn't proud of me.. because... I...I..." Harry paused. "His approval isn't something that's worth your time" Peter said. Harry furrowed his eyebrows, he was considering what Peter had said. Harry brought down his fists and Peter was surprised. Harry was in there, somewhere, Peter thought. Just as Peter finished that thought, Harry spun his head wildly and held it. "Harry, I know your in there! Fight the green!" Peter yelled. Harry fell to the ground and started muttering to himself as he continued to shake his head. "Harry listen to", Peter was cut off by his spider senses. The glider was back and this time it flew over Peter. Harry climbed on. "Harry listen to me! Don't take anymore gobulin green!" Peter yelled. The glider fired a missile and the ground beneath Peter gave away.


	2. Chapter 2

Peter watched with bewilderment as he fell. He shot a web at falling debris and missed. Frustrated Peter shot another piece of debris and pulled himself

towards it. He ran along the falling debris and jumped to hold on to another spinning piece of debris. Peter shot two pieces of debris that were adjacent, falling above him.

Peter pulled and launched himself up. He dove through a gap between the debris and he could see the sky from where the collapsed roof

was. Realizing he wasn't far Peter shot a web at the roof. Debris the size of Flash Thompson's football hit Peter on the side of his face. Screaming with agony

Peter spun diagonally, unable to see with his new blurry vision. That's gonna leave a mark, Peter muttered. Peter forced his eyes open. He could make out a

boulder sized piece of debris a foot away from his face. Peter shot a web to his right side wall and pulled instantly. The debris missed his body but it hit him

in the shin. Peter held on to his web awkwardly as he bumped against the wall. There was no debris left, a few stories of this building had collapsed. No sign

of gobby either Peter thought. As Peter shot webs and passed by a building, he noticed his reflection on the side of a glass window. Great, my face isn't even

Peter noticed. One side was sulking and the other appeared to be fine. How do I explain this to aunt may, I ran into a wall?! I just hope

Harry shows up at school Peter thought. Peter arrived home to a sleeping aunt may so he quickly walked up to his bedroom and collapsed in bed. My best

friend hates me, I still didn't do my english homework and I HAVE A BIO TEST TOMORROW, peter realized. He was too tired to will himself out of bed and he

closed his eyes. before he knew it he fell asleep. Peter woke up the next morning feeling pain in his shin and face, maybe I shouldn't go to school Peter

wondered. Igave so many hints to Harry that Peter Parker is spiderman. Maybe if he sees i'm his best friend, he won't want to kill me?! I don't know, I told

him things only Peter and Gwen knew, like his blackouts. The gobulin green is really messing with his head Peter concluded. As Peter walked out of his

home, he noticed aunt may was still in bed. She's just tired, Peter thought as he began to walk to he bus. Way too tired to swing webs today. As Peter

walked onto the courtyard, a sinister laugh echoed in his head. It's just my head Peter thought, he doesn't know who spiderman is. Paranoid, Peter turned

and looked both ways before walking into Harry Osborne. Peter fell back immediately. He's not in a goblin costume it's okay Peter thought. "What Pete,

your'e afraid of your own best friend?" Harry asked. I hate to tell ya Peter thought. "Of course not" Peter said quickly. As Peter got up Harry said "What

happened to your face, you have a big bruise on the right side". Peter hated himself. "I ran into a buildi-I walked into a wall" peter said. Unimpressed Harry

furrowed his eyebrows and was deep in thought. "When did you say this happened?" Harry asked. "Yesterday-morning" Peter said. He's onto me Peter

thought. The bell interrupted the conversation and Peter walked to bio. He said hi to Gwen and prepared to flunk his exam. Peter couldn't think clearly, the

day was a blur. In the hallway, Flash Thompson stopped Peter."Parker I don't know what you did to Liz but she won't talk to anyone" Flash said. "I don't-I

broke.. up with her" Peter said feeling guilty. I broke up with Liz so he could be with Gwen but that was selfish, I didn't consider what Liz must be going

through, after the Mark Molten man thing. Flash frowned and said "Parker you broke her heart". Flash shook his head as Peter frowned and awkwardly

walked home. Peter heard what he thought was an explosion. Not now, Peter thought. The green goblin was flying next to... the daily Bugle. I'll end it the

right way, no one dies, no one hurt, Peter thought. After Peter put on his costume He swung into the Bugle. As if on cue, Green goblin was waiting, behind a

wall where Peter couldn't see him. Peter's spider senses were going off but he couldn't locate the source. As Peter took a breath, he instantly knew, he had

fallen right into the hands of the goblin. The green goblins glider released a knockout gas and Peter collapsed to the floor, his vision fading to black.


	3. Chapter 3

Peter woke up, unable to move. With his blurry vision, he saw the green goblin next to him. "It's about time" The green goblin said. "I'll find out who you are

and there's nothing you can do about it" the goblin said. Peter knew it was the truth, he was paralyzed. The goblin walked up to Peter and slowly pulled up the

mask. Peter tried with all his willpower to turn his head, but his efforts were futile. The goblin pulled the mask over Peters chin, then his nose. Peter couldn't

believe it. All he could do was hope for the best. The goblin took the mask above Peters nose and eyes and dropped the mask with astonishment. "NO..no no

no, not _you" _The goblin muttered. Peter was lucky, he could feel the paralysis wearing off. Well, lucky isn't the right word Peter thought. Peter could move so

he stood up and put his mask back on. Harry was stunned, his best friend..was his worst enemy. "Harry, I've been your best friend, before freshmen year"

Peter said. The goblin was standing still, facing the other way."Then why did you kill my father?!" Harry asked. "Harry I did no such thing, if he loved you he

would never let you see him the way he was. He was hungry for power, he didn't show you the love you deserved. He didn't even go to your graduation for

god's sake!" Peter said. "I was there for you no matter what. Remember the time you sprained your ankle as a kid, we walked together to your house. I

didn't tell your mom you cried" Peter said. "That was so long ago, how do you remember..." Harry whispered. "Remember when Flash turned on the sprinklers in

the lab because he wasn't following directions. You and I told him the wrong solution to combine on purpose. He was trying to show off for Shashanna" Peter

said. Harry chuckled, " Remember when we both got detention and we threw paper planes at each other, Mr. Myers thought it was Flash" Peter said. Harry

laughed a natural clear laugh with his face towards the sky. "Remember when we ding dong ditched all the cheerleader's houses" Harry said. "Yeah, you

almost got caught by Liz's mom" Peter said. They both remembered all the moments they shared together. "Harry, I'm so sorry. I mean this like nothing

else. No jock, cheerleader, no girl can _ever_ come between our friendship" Peter said. Harry took off his mask and threw it to the ground. He smiled and dropped

his controls to his glider. "I don't know what got into me, I searched for my father's respect all my life. I now realize, it was never there to begin with. He was a selfish man, I

never told you about his secret projects. All I need is my friends and my own approval" Harry said. Peter's eyes watered as they embraced. "I'm glad I have you buddy" Harry

said. "Me too" Peter replied. "I didn't take any gobulin green today. I ran out" Harry admitted. "That's why you showed up at school and that's why your thinking with your

own head" Peter concluded."I forgot, there are hostages I was going to use to blackmail you, by the docks in warehouse 23" Harry said as they stopped embracing each

other. "Lets rescue them" the both said. "_Rescue?!" _a mocking voice asked. Peter and Harry turned to see this new foe. Peter recognized the familiar black ooze but he didn't

recognize the odd red tinge he saw. If it's not the symbiote venom, who the heck is it, Peter thought."I already killed those hostages! One woman begged and begged so I

killed her first, nice and slow. I can still remember her screams. mmm" This tall red and black ooze figure declared after bursting into laughter. "You psychopath!" Peter yelled

"Who are you?!" Harry asked. "Call us, CARNAGE" the red and black figure screamed. Carnage's arms stretched, took the form of a fist and smashed Harry off the skyscraper.

"HHAAAAAARRRRRYYYY!" Peter yelled at the top of his lungs. Peter ran to follow Harry but carnage shot Peters back with a web. Peter turned and shot a web at Carnage's

eyes. Carnage wiped the webs and peter grabbed the controls to Harry's glider. He pressed the button labeled "return". The glider rushed under Peter's legs and Peter

remembered how Norman Osborne had used it. The wind whistled in a deafening tone as Peter flew down as fast as he could. He could barely make out Harry's body flailing

about thirty stories beneath him. Peter willed the glider to go faster and could see Harry 10 stories beneath him. Peter reached out with his hand and so did Harry. There was

only a football stadium of room between Harry and the ground. Peter finally grabbed Harry's hand and they both pulled until Harry was on the glider. They stopped flying and

when they returned to the top of the building, carnage had vanished. Thank god Harry and Peter thought. "Lets go home buddy" Harry said. When they both traveled back

home, Peter noticed a television screen with a live news report. There was a giant web with the words "Try and stop me Spiderman". "There are 40 civilians missing, we

believe this 'carnage' has held them hostage" a reporter declared. "Harry, you go home, he's my enemy, I know where he came from. You should get some rest" Peter said.

Harry's head was spinning, he knew he should listen. "Okay" Harry said. Peter looked at his costume in a glass window's reflection, a few scratches no big deal Peter thought.

Peter's thoughts drifted to Dr. Connors and what he had said about the symbiote. He said it was highly adaptive, capable of adopting traits from it's host. It was a parasite,

now a psychopath has it Peter thought. Why is it black and red, did it split apart? Peter remembered it's weaknesses, loud sounds (the church bell), electricity (how he rid

captain Jupiter of it's influence with 10,000 volts). Peter swung through the city, this is definitely a trap Peter thought.


	4. Chapter 4

Peter shot a web and landed on the construction site. A stalagmite hit Peter and pinned him against the wall. Carnage laughed "Look at our foolish hero, ready

to die". Peter struggled to breathe but the stalagmite dissolved. Carnage formed axes with his hands and swung. Peter jumped and spun diagonally so he

avoided both axes. "Why are you keeping hostages?!" Peter yelled. "It's fun to see their pain" Carnage replied. "Every drop of blood, every cry for mercy, it

just feels _good" _carnage said. "YOUR INSANE" Peter yelled as he punched Carnage in the face. Carnage didn't flinch "Am I?" Carnage asked as he stretched

his hands to grab something. Carnage brought a sack, no a body. Peter's eyes widened, it was Harry. "I can taste your pain!" Carnage squealed with

excitement. Harry seemed to be breathing but he had a massive bruise on his forehead, a long cut on his stomach and his leg was bending at an

awkward angle. "I'm.. sorry buddy... I didn't listen. He took-Gwen " Harry moaned. "NNNNNNOOOOOOO!" Peter yelled and shot a web above carnage's

head. "You missed" carnage taunted. Peter had purposely shot the ceiling, he pulled, launching himself over carnage. Carnage didn't anticipate this so Peter

quickly picked up a piece of metal with a web and banged it against a metal wall. Carnage disfigured but it was only for a second. "What was that?" Carnage

laughed hysterically. That was venom's weakness, I thought it would work, peter felt defeated. Harry was dying, Gwen was hostage and this guy was,

unstoppable. Peter could not think positive. Carnage shot balls of webs and Peter cart wheeled out of the way. The webs broke through the metal construction

site. This guy is REALLY strong Peter thought. I need to try something else. Peter ran at carnage and slid under Carnage's legs, Peter shot a web at the back

of Carnage's head in an attempt to pull him down. Carnage didn't budge. Carnage transformed his hand into a mace and swung at Peter but Peter did a back

flip. Peter had to lure carnage for his plan to work. "You may be strong but are you fas-" Peter was cut off by carnage's hand slamming against his

stomach. Carnage shot a web at Peter's wrists and ankle's. Carnage secured Peter to the metal ceiling and floor with a series of webs. Peter tried to break

free but the webs were incredibly strong. "Now for the torturing" Carnage said. Carnage brought a woman from another floor of the building with his

outstretched hand. "Is this the Gwen you spoke of?" Carnage asked. Peter turned to Harry, he was unconscious but still breathing. "No, don't hurt her!" Peter

yelled. It wasn't Gwen but he couldn't allow anyone to be hurt. Peter tried his best to break free and he heard what sounded like the web falling apart.

Carnage grabbed the screaming woman with one hand and he turned the other into a blade. "PLEASE" the woman sobbed, Carnage responded with

laughter. Peter formed fists and pulled, this lunatic will stop at nothing. I HAVE TO STOP HIM, peter thought. "I HAVE TWO CHILDREN, They have a drunkard

for a father, PLEASE.. LET ME GO" she continued to sob. "BOO HOO" carnage mimicked as he stabbed her in the stomach. The woman's body jolted to a side

and went limp. "CAAARRRRRRNNNNAGGGEEEE! I SWEAR! If i don't beat you to a pulp, YOU'LL WISH I DID. THAT'S TOO FAR!" Peter yelled. "Carnage

dropped the woman's body and blood covered the floor. Peter felt adrenaline coursing through his veins. Peter ripped the web and at lightning speed, he

jumped, dodged carnage's blade, then he dodged a mace and brought his knee to the face of Carnage. This sent Carnage flying out of the building. Peter

shot two webs at the walls and catapulted himself out. With one hand he punched carnage's face in midair, the other shot a web. Peter grabbed Carnage and

flung him through an advertisement billboard. Peter then landed on Carnage's stomach, and jumped to avoid Carnage's blade hands. Peter shot two webs at carnage

and peter did a front flip. This launched carnage in the direction of the planetarium. Peter's goal was to shock Carnage with the same charge that rid captain

Jupiter of his alien infection. Carnage brought a fist to Peters chest and pounded him rapidly. Then Carnage brought a hammer and hit Peter's face with it.

Peter flipped to the corner of the roof top they were on. "Who knew you could be so pesky?!" Carnage screamed. Carnage pinned Peter to the ground with a

web. "No more torture, you die NOW" Carnage said. Carnage shaped up a hammer and bashed Peter with it. Peter could see his memories passing him by.

All his friends, all his enemies. Carnage smashed him again, Peter felt like he broke some ribs. Peter's eyes came to tears as carnage smashed him again. Blood

came out of Peter's mouth. I failed Uncle Ben, the saddest thought Peter could imagine. Carnage continued to taunt him and with each blow the pain

intensified. The physical pain was nothing compared to his emotional pain. Peter was going to die. He was going to leave behind aunt may, Gwen, Harry, and

he failed uncle Ben. Peter's heart felt as if it shattered. He burst into tears. It would be over in a few minutes Peter thought. Peter noticed pieces of dust

accumulating. I'm hallucinating Peter thought. But the dust continued to come together and Carnage stopped pounding Peter. Peter's vision cleared now that

he wasn't being hit. It wasn't dust, it was... _sand. _The sand formed limbs, a hand, legs, a body and a face. IT WAS SANDMAN! Peter never thought in a

million years he would be excited to see his old foe. "Mar-co" Peter whispered. "Yeah, I thought about what ya said, what was it, with great power comes

great duty?" Marco asked. "resp..onsi-bility" Peter croaked. "Right", Marco smiled as he cut the webs off Peter. "Hey red guy, you wanna mess with my pal, you gotta mess

with me first" Marco shouted. Peter was astonished, he couldn't believe it. Marco gave up crime for morals, to help the people on that ship, and now he's helping me, peter

thought. Peter watched as Marco transformed his hand into a mace and smashed Carnage like a baseball bat. "Th..anks" Peter moaned. "Don't mention it" Marco said smiling.

Peter took painful breaths. He could barely keep his eyes open. Marco and Carnage clashed with blade hitting blade. Marco wasn't taking any damage but Carnage was being

over whelmed by the arsenal of moves Marco had. Marco brought sand fists from both sides and crushed carnage like a fly. Then Peter's eyes closed and all he saw was

darkness...


	5. Chapter 5

Peter woke up with the sound of shifting sand. "And stay outta here!" Marco yelled. "Marco, where did he go?" Peter asked frowning. "Past the broken billboard

why?" Marco asked, confused. "He has hostages, he's going back to the construction site he's keeping them in." Peter said. "Lets go" Marco said with a serious

expression. Peter nodded and Marco carried him in a sea of sand. They arrived to see carnage scaling the floors. Leaping three stories at a time, he was

getting closer to Harry's floor. "I'll get the red dude, you get the hostages" Marco said. Peter couldn't argue; Carnage was too strong. Peter shot a web at the

floor Harry was on. Peter approached him with tears in his eyes. "Buddy.. I'm not going to make it", Harry said with a grim expression. A tear fell down

Peter's cheek. "Are you crying?" Harry asked, with tears in his own eyes. "No" Peter replied while wiping tears. Below them, a sound of scraping metal and

the scream of Carnage filled the air. "Take care of Gwen Pete" Harry said. Peter nodded and replied "You've been my best friend for so long, I'll never forget

you Harry" Peter said, knowing this was the end. Harry smiled and nodded slowly "Me neither" he whispered. Marco screamed and his voice faded. What

happened, is he gone? Peter wondered. Carnage burst through the metal ground and Peter shot web pellets at him. Carnage made scissors with his hand and

tried to cut Peter but Peter leaped between the blades. With his other hand, Carnage smashed Peter to the opposite side of the room. Now Carnage was right

next to Harry. Carnage lifted Harry up. Peter tried to stop Carnage by firing balls of webs, but carnage deflected them with ease. Carnage made an axe with

his hand and suddenly, time began to slow. Harry made eye contact with Peter and gave him a genuine smile. Peter's heart pounded against his chest. He was bewildered but

Carnage aimed the axe at Harry. "YOU..think you have... won?" Harry croaked. Peter felt like he was choking just as much as Harry was. "I already have" Carnage laughed.

"Re..ally?" Harry said. "what are you babbling about?" Carnage asked. Suddenly Peter knew what was going to happen. He was too late to stop it now. "Checkmate" Harry

said with a loud voice, smiling at Peter again. Peter could have sworn Harry mouthed the words "good bye". Harry's glider flew right into the building and into the stomach of

Carnage. Then, when Peter thought it was over, an explosion blew Peter away...Literally and figuratively. "Harry" Peter whispered. His best friend had done something

spiderman could never do; he sacrificed his life. Sandman took form next to Peter and said "I'm sorry". "It's not your fault. You did what you could, thanks again" Peter said.

"I brought the other hostages to the cops" Sandman answered. Peter nodded remembering Gwen was abducted. I'll check on her as Peter Parker, Peter thought. Sandman

turned into sand and flew with the wind. Peter called Gwen immediately after coming home. He walked past the counter, failing to notice very important letters. Peter dialed

her number. "Hello, this is Gwen speaking-" Gwen's voice. "Hey, G-" Peter said. He was cut off "Please leave a message" Gwen's voice said. Great, voicemail, Peter thought.

Aunt May hugged him and asked him about dinner. Peter said he would eat later, not letting his injuries show. When he got to his room, Peter collapsed. I'm just so done

with this, with everything. All the pain, everyone that died. Why am I always blamed for it?! Peter thought. He took off his suit and stuffed it in a briefcase and shoved it

under his bed. Why bother folding it? I feel so abandoned. No matter how hard I try, everything I do just..BACKFIRES. New York can save itself, spidermnan can't even save

his friends. A voice in his head argued; _what about Liz, Mary Jane, Gwen, all your friends that you saved? _ Shut up Peter told that voice. All spiderman did was cause trouble in

each aspect of my life. I failed my bio test because I was too busy fighting Harry, I lost the trust of my friends with the "bugle pictures" excuse and I come home with my ribs

broken. Hey things are just greaaat aren't they? _If you give up, there __will be no chance of things ever improving. At least if you try, you have hope. Even the slightest chance _

_of success is better than no __chance. You're putting too much stress on yourself, blaming yourself for things you couldn't prevent. _Be quiet Peter thought. I'm a loser, I've

always been alone. My "friends" don't exist. It's too hard to keep fighting. It's just so easy to give in. _You're wrong, Harry sacrificed his life to save you and even Marco _

_fought carnage to save your sorry butt__. Black Cat helped you __escape prison and those missed calls from aunt may and gwen?! So many people care about you. You refuse to _

_accept it, making yourself look __like the victim. You are not __alone you just ignore the people who care. You push them away._ Deep down, Peter knew this voice was right. He

was too stubborn to listen. "There is no more spiderman" Peter declared.


	6. Chapter 6

Peter stood in an all too familiar construction site. His heart thumped rapidly as he saw carnage...and..._Harry. _Peter couldn't believe it. Harry was alive?!

"Harry! You're alive! " Peter shouted. "Of course I am, why wouldn't I be?" Harry replied with a confused expression. Carnage tried to swing at Harry with

an axe for a hand but Harry flew up with his glider and launched grenades. Carnage screamed with agony but Peter still couldn't believe it. The time of day

was early morning, which was strange..for some reason. Peter launched himself by shooting two adjacent webs and pulling. Peter punched the face of

Carnage once, twice and then Peter smashed Carnage's head against the floor. "I didn't think you would be so weak" Harry taunted. Harry without a scratch, Peter

thought. Carnage got up and Harry flew full speed with his glider and at the last second he turned towards Peter. Peter was not going to let Harry die. Peter

shot a web at Harry and pulled Harry before the explosion reached him. Harry landed next to Peter and smiled. Peter smiled back still grasping the idea that

Harry had survived. But so many things don't add up, Peter thought. Harry said "Wanna head to the silver spoon?". Peter was about to reply but a beeping

sound cut him off. The sound would not stop, Harry turned towards Peter. "Peter, you're going to be late for school!" Harry said with a voice that wasn't his.

Harry sounded like...aunt May. The beeping got louder and Peter wanted to die.

Peter opened his eyes and he was in his bedroom. A tear fell down his cheek as he realized it was all a dream. Harry's funeral was more than two weeks ago.

Harry was never coming back. At his funeral, Flash Thompson cried his eyes out, shocking everyone. Gwen offered to hold Peter's hand but Peter didn't

move. "Peter, get to school!" aunt may called out. Peter located the source of the beeping, his alarm clock and shut it off. Peter's day went quick, as usual.

Peter barely spoke to anyone, didn't pay attention to his classes. Last period is when the day slowed down. Flash was reading a newspaper behind Peter and

he read it out loud with shock. "CRIME UP 73%" Flash read "I don't believe it... My hero.. let me down" he continued. One of the cheerleaders in the back

said "Face it, Spiderman is probably dead, sandman rescued hostages and returned them to the police. But that was weeks ago." "I don't care what you

think, Spiderman would _never _give up" Flash said. "Then why hasn't he showed?" the cheerleader asked. Flash had no answer, neither did Peter. Peter was

annoyed at the irony, Flash used to bully Peter, but Peter was spiderman, Flash's hero. Who cares? Peter thought to himself when class ended. Peter walked

through the hallways but he was held back. Flash was holding his arm "I'm sorry" he said. "For what?" Peter asked knowing the answer. "For ever picking on

you and Osbor-Harry" Flash said, the most heartfelt apology he had ever given. Flash wasn't capable of apologizing, or addressing people by their first

names Peter thought. "BUZZ OFF!" Peter shouted, pushing Flash out of the way. Flash fell to the floor and looked at Peter as if he didn't know him. "You

called me a.. a bully before. Now i'm starting to wonder who the real bully is" Flash said in a low voice. Peter rushed out of school. He was shocked, annoyed,

angry, and most of all...confused. Peter thought if he gave up being spiderman, his life would be easier. Peter had only retired the costume for more than

two weeks but crime had already skyrocketed, his social life had fallen apart and he lost his self esteem. _It's not too late, it's never too late._ A voice in

Peter's head said. Peter tried to ignore the voice but he soon remembered what happened a few days ago. Peter was walking home and he bought a corn dog. That wasn't

the reason he remembered this of course. Peter heard sirens and turned to look. A car drove into a few other cars, bumped into a newspaper stand, all while

speeding. A cop car followed. Peter looked down at his corn dog and took a bite. It was tasty..more tasty than this cop chase. The sirens got louder and Peter

had to grit his teeth to ignore the sound. When the cars passed, Peter felt a pang of guilt. He had ignored it but he remembered it vividly. Peter pushed

each thought that came to his mind away. He walked home and went to bed after saying hello to aunt may. Peter was so irritable, a speck of dust on his hair made him yell

with frustration. Peter read a book and went to sleep. Peter woke up and went to school, the cycle was so old Peter could do it with his eyes closed. When Peter finished third

period, Gwen said hello in the hallway. Peter didn't look at her. "hi" Peter said. "Have you heard about the spring dance?I was thinking-you and I-" Gwen said. Peter cut her

off "Not happening" without even realizing. When Peter looked up, Gwen was walking quickly in the other direction...wiping her eyes with her wrist. Flash came from behind

Peter, having witnessed everything. "What's gotten into you?! You don't talk to anyone but when you do, you shout at them. I know your best friend passed away but that's

not an excuse. You have Gwen and Liz crying, and now you don't say smart things! Are you on _drugs?! _I don't even know who you are anymore" Flash said angrily.

Peter was speechless but Flash wasn't waiting for a response, "Just because you don't wear glasses anymore-doesn't mean you're not _blind._ Just because _you_ don't see what

you're doing to everyone else, doesn't mean it's not happening" Flash said with a disgusted expression. Peter was unable to formulate a sentence. Flash didn't know much

about Peter but he had described everything that was going on. One of Flash's friends put his arm around Flash and ruffled his hair. He said "Flash, you've gone soft". Flash

replied "If you think I've gone soft, then _maybe_ you didn't know me to begin with" Flash took his friend's arm off of himself. Silence filled the hallway as Flash walked away.

How could Flash Thompson of all people talk sense? Even his grades were impressive, Flash had an A in biology, Peter was failing. Peter walked home in silence. When he got

home, aunt may was sitting down with her head on the kitchen table. Her eyes were closed and she didn't seem to be moving. Was she breathing?! Peter dropped his bag

and rushed to aunt may. _NO NO NO no, _Peter thought. _Please, _he begged. Peter shook her shoulders. His heart was thumping rapidly against his chest. There were butterflies

in his stomach. She didn't move. Peter shock her again, with his eyes wide. Peter felt like Carnage was choking him. No response. Peter sobbed "Au-hant Mayy". To Peter's

amazement, her eyes slowly opened. "Peter?" she said as she sat up and put her glasses on. "You look like you've seen a ghost" she said. Peter managed a grim smile. _I _

_have __seen a ghost...In the mirror. _"I was just taking a nap, the cooking really got to me" Aunt May said. "You should get some rest", Peter said. As she went to her bedroom

Peter looked around the kitchen. _She said __the cooking took a lot out of her but there's no food __anywhere,_ Peter thought. Peter approached the counter and noticed a stack of

letters. Peter picked them up and read them. They all had one thing in common. They were bills...overdue...


	7. Chapter 7

Peter looked at the overdue bills. He realized he hadn't taken a picture of spiderman for ages. The Daily Bugle hadn't been able to get a picture of

spiderman, because well, Spiderman didn't exist anymore. That's why aunt may was over stressed, the bills were inundating her. She fell asleep on the table for god's sake,

Peter thought. All of this was his fault. When Peter took pictures of spiderman, Aunt may and him weren't in debt.

Peter wanted to run to ease his troubled mind, but there was nowhere to go. Today was friday, going outside was a risk because of the crime uproar. Peter didn't have any

better ideas. He took his jacket and slipped his hands through the sleeves. Peter didn't know here he was going but he later realized he needed an umbrella. He was already

too far to turn back, so Peter continued walking with his head down. Peter walked and walked, trying to look at places or people..anything that would keep his mind off

Spiderman. Peter crossed an intersection as the rain pelted his head. Thunder rumbled as Peter almost got hit by a car. He almost cursed but took a deep breath in and

continued walking. Peter saw a poster for a circus and thought to himself; maybe I should audition, being the clown I am. It was hard to see because of the overcast skies and

the dark fog. The constant rain didn't make it any easier. Peter leaned against the wall and looked to the sky. Rain fell in a continuous pattern, thunder rumbled but nothing

would change Peter. Nothing would change the fact that he had let his best friend die. Nothing could change the fact that he was afraid. So afraid of letting his loved ones get

hurt. Peter stopped leaning against the wall and he sighed. The poster got stuck to his back. Great, even if I don't want to be spiderman, I still have my stupid powers, Peter

thought. _You're blessed, you took everything you ever had for granted. You had two wonderful caretakers, but because of your selfishness, Uncle Ben died. Your powers were _

_capable __of doing so much more good. You're wasting yourself._ _You think you're helping people by not being spiderman?! You just ignore them now, you care less than you _

_ever did __before! If you truly cared, you would save the city from the bank robbery that happens each week. _Are you trying to make me feel worse than I already do?! Peter

argued with himself as he continued walking. Why does this look so familiar Peter asked himself? Lightning illuminated his previously dark surroundings. Peter saw a library

across the street from him. For some reason, Peter couldn't breathe. Its just a library, Peter thought even though even though he knew it wasn't. Peter turned away and saw

stairs. Nohhho Peter thought, not here, anywhere but here. As he walked away quickly, his mind betrayed him. Lightning flashed again and Peter saw the road. It can't be the

same one..no no, Peter thought. This is the place where uncle Ben had dropped Peter off about a year ago. Peter had lied that he was going to the library across the street but

he was really going to wrestle for money. Peter's memory came back. He was sitting in the car with uncle Ben in this same street. The skies were clear and Peter was about to

leave the car but uncle Ben said "Wait, I need to talk to you". "We can talk later" Peter said. "We can talk now", uncle Ben said with a serious expression. Peter did not want

to relive this memory. "But what do we have to talk about?" Peter asked shaking his head. "We haven't talked at all, me and your aunt barely know you. You're having these

experiments in your room, your skipping your chores, your starting fights at school-" Uncle Ben said looking Peter in the eyes. "I didn't start that fight" Peter argued. "But you

sure as hell ended it.. I was going through exactly the same thing you are" Uncle Ben said without breaking eye contact. "No, not exactly" Peter said, as he shook his head.

"You're changing, these are the years a man changes into the man he's going to become for the rest of his life. Just be careful what you change into" Uncle Ben said with a

grim expression. "I'm sure that kid deserved what he got but don't get me wrong. Just because you _can _beat him up, doesn't give you the right to. Just remember,

**with great power comes great ****responsibility", **Uncle Ben said. Peter felt chills go down his spine. Peter knew he had already become what he feared the most. A man

unable to protect his loved ones, unable to find courage within himself...A failure. Uncle Ben had no idea what was happening to Peter, but his advice still aided Peter through

his difficult changes in the past.. Peter watched the scene change and he was standing in his spiderman costume. I don't deserve to wear this, Peter thought. He saw a void

and across from him, Peter saw all the villains he ever faced, Shocker, Vulture, Doctor Octopus, you name it. Peter had a sudden temptation to run the other way, but he had

a stronger temptation to quip and shoot a web. Peter took a step forward and electro shocked him instantly. Peter screamed with agony and his body sizzled as it fell. Peter

fell sideways, one half of his body was in a puddle. Peter could see from the reflection of the puddle. He waited for his enemies to finish him. Instead, an old man walked from

behind Peter and then around him. He crouched and said "C'mon Peter, you can do _so much better _than that". "Uncle Ben, it's _hard, _the more I try, the worse things become",

Peter complained. Uncle Ben held out his hand and Peter took it. "No one said it would be easy. Life is like a freeway. You need to keep driving no matter what. Every once in

a while, you encounter bumps, potholes, roadblocks. Something will _always_ try to stop you. But if you never give up hope and keep driving, you will see smooth roads again"

Uncle Ben said as he pulled Peter up. Peter relaxed a bit. He hugged Uncle Ben as tears fell down his cheeks. Uncle Ben smiled and Peter saw his past moments with Uncle

Ben again. Peter remembered his first time fishing with Uncle Ben; Peter was bored of watching his reel and suddenly a fish was tugging. Peter ran to his fishing rod and he

spun the reel, determined to catch his prey. Peters body jolted to a side when the fishing rod jerked. Uncle Ben encouraged him, shouting words of inspiration. Peter reeled

and reeled but when the hook was above sea level, there was nothing there. The bait and the prey were gone. Peter felt extremely disappointed but Uncle Ben laughed and

patted Peter on the back. "Success is not final, failure is not fatal, it's the courage to continue that counts-Winston Churchill. You put up one hell of a fight, but you can't win

them all" Uncle Ben said smiling. Peter didn't feel as bad but Uncle Ben brought his hand from behind his back. He revealed fresh caught fish with a wide grin on his face.

Peter's eyes widened and he too smiled. "But courage isn't the only thing that can help you" Uncle Ben said, suddenly his smile faded. "Whenever we struggle, we lose

ourselves. Our loved ones are the only ones that can bring us back. They know us better than anyone else. _Never, I repeat, never give up on your loved ones and never push _

_the people that __care out of your life_" Uncle Ben said. Peter looked at him wondering. "If we were all stubborn, we would never learn. If I refused to talk to you and you

refused to talk to me because we got into a debate; how would we know who was wrong and who was right? We would never find out and we would die ignorant. We have to

accept mistakes and seek first to understand, then to be understood." Uncle Ben had said when Peter was grounded once. Peter felt an enormous amount of confidence. The

scene changed again and Peter was in costume again, facing all his enemies. Uncle Ben said "_Peter my son,_I will _always _be on your side. We make mistakes but if we let them

scar us, we are as good as finished. Courage always comes from within. Stop trying to find it outside of yourself. Remember all the villains you brought to justice. All the

people your web shooting saved because of your quick thinking. You wear that costume and put your life on the line day in and day out. You are the _bold and humble man I _

_always hoped you would be. _Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery but today, today is a _gift, not a given right_. Stop fretting over what could have been and what

happened; if you dwell on the past or present, you are certain to miss the future" Uncle Ben said. Peter looked down at his costume and then at Uncle Ben. "Don't ever seek

to find yourself behind someone else." Uncle Ben said while embracing Peter. He put his hands on Peter's shoulders, "Look at you, you've grown so big!" Uncle Ben said with

his eyebrows raised. "Go get them _s__on"_ Uncle Ben finished. Peter taunted "Which one of you should I take first! Tweety? Ox? All of you? Let's dance" Peter shouted, running.

Uncle Ben had his arms crossed and he couldn't help but chuckle.

Peter was back in the real world, feeling as if he was frozen for three weeks and just thawed out. He had so much to do and so many things to say. He ran home making a

mental checklist. _Okay, first, get food for aunt may, second, sew together spiderman costume, then fight crime and get bugle pictures. Oh and make web formula stronger _

_and call Gwen. Should I also thank Flash? Also, pay for Mark's bail?_ Peter ran upstairs and kissed a sleeping aunt may on the forehead, after drying off. Peter then went to his

room and looked under his bed. He saw the briefcase with dust on the cover. He pulled it out and blew off the dust. He grinned like an idiot. Peter opened the case and saw

his red and blue costume. Red for hardiness and valor, blue for morality and justice. The costume was tattered and unfolded. Peter sewed and sewed. He finally pieced the

suit together and he stared at it as if it was a birthday cake. _Back in action woohhoooo._ He then worked for hours studying the composition of his previous webs. He

experimented with his formula until he found one that could was stronger than most of the metals known to earth. Peter put the web shooters and the costume on. He barely

remembered to leave the food he bought on aunt may's dresser. Peter heard a choir in his head. The melody was slow at first but it was bittersweet. He left aunt May a note

telling her he would be back by ten. That gave him an hour. Peter heard the choir in his head intensify as he jumped out his window in his spiderman costume. He shot a web,

almost forgetting how to do so. He swung and shot another web before he crashed into a house. Peter approached the lower east side of Manhattan, the area with the most

crime rates as of recently (courtesy of Flash reading the newspaper out loud). Peter yelled out with excitement, "Spiderman is BACK!"


	8. Chapter 8

Peter arrived in the lower east side of Manhattan rather slowly, he was not familiar with swinging through the city. He circled the area in search for crime.

Pretty soon, Peter heard a bank alarm a few blocks ahead of him. _I'll play it smart, I need to find out why crime is so high. _Peter shot a web and landed on the

roof. Luckily, there were windows on the roof. He shot a web and attached his camera to the window. Peter peered inside and saw five or so masked and armed men. _Play it _

_stealthy, your rusty._ Peter climbed around the building and inside through the main door. It was funny, no one was watching the door, all the civilians had their hands on their

heads and the man in charge was yelling for money. No one looked Peter's way as he crawled on the ceiling. He approached one armed thug from above. He was in the corner

taunting a man and his daughter. Peter aimed his web at the muzzle of his gun. Peter calculated the projection of his web and shot. As soon as he fired the first, Peter fired

another web at the thug's mouth ensuring his cover wasn't blown. The thug looked around and tried to scream but there was only a muffled sound. He was too far for

the other thugs to hear him. Peter shot a web at his body and attached him to the roof silently. _One thug down four to go. _Peter needed to isolate the other four but they were

too close together. Peter waited patiently. "Hey, where's Reg?" one of the masked thugs asked, finally. Peter watched the thugs turn and look in all directions. "What the hell?

He was right here?" another thug said. The man yelling for money said "Shut up, Reg was always selfish, he probably took some loose change he robbed". One thug walked

around to where Reg was standing. The other three focused on the money. They were almost done, Peter realized. He quickly shot a web at the thugs gun muzzle, then his

mouth. Peter pulled him up to the web he created on the ceiling. This thug however tried to fire his gun. Peter winced as the gun fired and the web on the muzzle held the

bullets. It was not nearly as loud as Peter anticipated, but it made the thugs turn. Peter shot webs on their faces and there were muffled screams. Peter's spider sense tingled.

One of the thugs was going to fire his gun. Peter shot a web at the gun in a millisecond. _One of the new perks of my new and improved web shooters. _Peter smiled as he

lowered himself and secured the thugs to the web on the ceiling. The citizens were keeping their distance from him. _Weird, I don't remember looking like Carnage. _As Peter

took a bag and emptied the money the thugs stole, a woman gripped her husband's hand and hid behind him. Peter said "Alright, your'e safe now", he put the money on a

desk and walked slowly out of the bank. _Not a very warm welcome, _Peter sighed as cop cars arrived in front of the bank. Peter decided it wasn't worth it, negotiating with the

cops. _If the __civilians don't trust me, then why would the cops? _ Peter shot a web and swung quickly. As he turned to look back, the cops had their pistols out. Peter frowned,

_whatever, at __least I got the pictures._ Now_ to retrieve them_. Peter swung from behind a building and landed on the roof. He jumped from building to building, until he landed

on the bank. Peter retrieved his camera and swung in the opposite direction of the cop cars. Peter looked at his pictures as he shot webs in the direction of the daily Bugle.

Peter swung into an open window. Janitor's closet. Peter changed his costume and walked out. He walked into the nostalgic place he once resented. He could already hear

Jonah Jameson. "What do you mean, you don't have any pictures! Get out of my office in two point five seconds!" Mr. Jameson said pointing to the exit. Peter saw familiar

faces and walked into the office of Mr. Jameson. "Parker, I thought you died! Do you have any pictures?!" he said. "Yes", Peter said showing Mr. Jameson. He chuckled and

said "Alright kid, get your check from Betty." Peter walked up to her and said "Hello" awkwardly and she smiled at him. She gave him his check and Peter was excited. He

looked at the check said "Thank you" and he walked out. _This is enough money to pay for the overdue bills but not enough for Mark's bail. Oh well. Peter smiled regardless. _

No more negativity. Peter checked his watch. 9:50. He had to get home quick, so Peter ran into an alleyway and changed into his costume. Peter spun webs and kept

swinging. The city passed in a blur. _I'm getting the hang of this, _Peter thought as he trekked a quarter of a mile in seconds. Peter's spider senses tingled and suddenly a black

shape spun and kicked him. Peter bumped into a building and shot a web to avoid falling. He turned to find his attacker but his spider sense tingled, non stop. Peter looked up

and was kicked in the face. He fell but shot a web at a crane. Peter pulled quickly and landed on the building, next to the crane. _I didn't get a chance to see. Whoever this is, _

_they're swift. It can't be __venom. Can it?! _Peter looked around as his spider sense warned him of a whip. Peter turned and held the whip. He saw his attacker. It was a female,

dressed in grey. She had her mouth covered by a part of her costume. Her eyes were hidden by a mask. Her eye color was blue, she had dark brown hair and she was

wearing a jumpsuit. _I've never __seen this woman in my life, _Peter thought. She crouched and spun with her leg adjacent to the ground. Peter jumped up, realizing (too late)

that he let go of the whip. His attacker swung the whip. Peter turned and sucked in his chest to avoid the whip. When he landed, he stepped on the whip. He shot a web at the

end where his attacker held the whip. Peter pulled and his attacker was dragged with the whip. "Who are you?!" Peter asked. His attacker let go of the whip and slid under

Peter's legs. "Your'e worst enemy" she responded. _Her voice was.. familiar? "_Have we met?" Peter asked. "Does it matter?" she asked. His attacker swung with her nails and

cut a piece of Peter's costume. His chest burned from where she had clawed. "What's your name and who do you work for?!" Peter demanded. She responded after a few

seconds, "I am grey hound" she said. _Why did __it take her so long to reply? Did she just come up with that name?! _"I work for my boss. She doesn't care for a name" grey

hound said. "So why attack me?" Peter asked. "She has a grudge against Spiderman" grey hound said. Peter was going to ask her another question but she threw a smoke

bomb. The smoke flooded Peter and he coughed and sputtered. Grey hound tried to pull her whip from under the web but it was too sturdy. She gave up and ran. Peter

looked around when the smoke cleared. _A new female __nemesis and an even more mysterious boss. What would anyone want from me? At least she left something. _Peter

picked up the whip after tearing the whip. A memory was tugging at Peter's brain but he realized he was late. _It's 10:25! _Peter picked up the whip and decided he would

examine it later. Peter shot webs and swung into his neighborhood. He climbed into his window and put his suit in his briefcase. He put the whip in his closet. "Peter? I don't

remember you coming back" Aunt May called from downstairs. Peter realized things wouldn't add up if she saw him. He tucked his things away and jumped out his window.

Peter crawled around the outside of the house until he reached the porch. Peter jumped down and rang the bell. Aunt May soon opened the door, hugging Peter. "Where were

you?!" She demanded. Peter pulled out his check from the Bugle and she held him closer. "Be careful, Peter, the world is very different. Crime is too common, just promise

me you will stay safe" Aunt May pleaded. Peter nodded thinking, _she's right. I don't know the villains anymore, heck, I don't even know the civilians. Spiderman isn't _

_welcome, but he'll find a place to stay._ Peter walked inside with Aunt May and they ate. Peter dialed Gwen's number. One ring. Two rings. The bell kept ringing and Gwen

didn't answer. He decided he would leave a voicemail. He said "Hi, It's Peter, heh, i'm sure you can tell by the number. I just called because I wanted to sa- know what you

have been up to. I need to talk to you about something. Just, uh, call me back." Peter hung up. _I don't even remember what her face looks like, I've been ignoring her for so _

_long. _"Gwen?" aunt May asked. "Yeah" Peter replied. "Why the sudden change of heart? You haven't talked about her for so long" aunt May asked. "I was having a-hard time

managing things. I forgot who I was.." Peter said "I'm fine now" he quickly added. "You should have told me. I'm here to help" aunt May said with her eyebrows furrowed.

Peter smiled, "I'm okay aunt May, I'll tell you if anything ever happens, promise." Peter replied, sincerely,_ I think I may have to tell Gwen the truth. Pretty soon she won't _

_know who to trust. The people of New York are afraid of __spiderman and Gwen is afraid of Peter Parker. I have to tell her the truth to protect her. There are too many doubts _

_and too much concern._ Peter did his homework before anything else. He studied for tests he had next week and he researched organic chemistry. He tried to find a stronger

mixture for his webs. Peter wanted to have multiple web shooting mixtures prepared. All were insoluble, so water could'nt separate the elements in his webs. Peter then

experimented with types of webs and the speed at which he could fire. Peter decided he needed many webs, each with an individual purpose. He designed a rope web that

would allow civilians to climb to safety, if ever required. Peter realized that his fast webs were weaker because of the chemical composition. They were quicker than his strong

webbing but weaker nevertheless. Peter completely forgot about his encounter with grey was a huge mistake on his part. He fell asleep from exhaustion.


	9. Chapter 9

Hammerhead piled up his documents into a cabinet. _No more big man bossin' me around. Rumors of spiderman comin' back. Need a distraction for that web _

_crawler. _Hammerhead had a brilliant plan. If executed, he would become the new crime lord. A tall, dark brown haired woman in a grey jumpsuit entered his

office. "Who you s'pposed to be?" Hammerhead asked. "And how did you get passed security?!" Hammerhead asked as he reached in his coat pocket for his

knife. "I want to propose an alliance" the woman said. "I can get you what you want, but I need you to get me what _I _want." she continued. "Okay what is

it?" Hammerhead relaxed his grip on his knife. "And wait a minute, what's a pretty girl like you doing without a name?" Hammerhead teased. "My name

is _grey hound" _she said. Hammerhead smiled "Continue".

Peter woke up at 11 in the morning. The first thing that came to his mind was calling Gwen. She picked up on the second bell. Peter leaped with joy. "Hi

Gwen, I'm sorry about what I said on friday-" Peter was cut off when Gwen said "It's okay". Peter was surprised. "So uh, about the spring dance.." Peter

said. "I'll just not go" Gwen sighed. "No, no I was wondering.. if.." Peter paused. _C'mon don't screw this up, this is the woman you love. Tell her. _"I was

wondering if you would go with me" Peter said. His heart raced. "Really?" Gwen whispered, barely believing what had happened. "Of course. I-need to

tell you a something. I was in a tough position but I know what I want more than anything else". "And what's that?" She asked nervously. _Take this opportunity. You won't _

_regret it. "_I want to be with you" Peter said. Gwen felt as if she could fly. She never thought Peter would say those words. "So, will you go with me?" Peter asked, finding it

difficult to breathe. "Of course" Gwen said, a little too quickly. Peter felt as if a mountain was taken off his shoulders. All the stress he was carrying, the entire year, it was all

gone. All because he made a move. "But there's one problem" Gwen said pausing. "The last day for tickets was friday". Peter didn't care, he would pull some strings, pay

someone for two tickets. "Don't worry, I'll find a way" Peter said, determined. Gwen was surprised yet again. "We don't-have to go. You don't have to get tickets." Gwen said,

trying to be nice. Even though she hoped more than ever, that Peter and her would go. "No. I wouldn't miss a chance like this, not even if spiderman was posing for a

picture" Peter said, feeling proud of himself. "Wow" she whispered. Gwen loved Peter. She could not fathom what she was feeling. _"I love you" _Peter said. "I love you too"

Gwen said. They exchanged goodbyes and Peter hung up. He jumped up and accidentally hit the ceiling. There was a thump but he responded "I'm okay" when aunt May

asked what the racket was. _I'm not okay. I'm more than okay. I'm in_ love. Peter's heart soared at the thought of Gwen. When she smiled at him, it felt like the sun got

brighter. He wouldn't care if him and Gwen were the only people on earth. He walked downstairs and aunt May wished him a good morning. The news was on. "Sources say,

spiderman is responsible for the prevention of a bank robbery just yesterday. There has been quite some confirmation. He left behind webbing and a card saying 'courtesy of

your friendly neighborhood spiderman'. There have also been a few eye witness accounts-" The reporter continued. Peter smiled as he munched on his breakfast. He savored

his pancakes and told aunt May they were great. Except the last one, it was burnt. Peter kept this to himself. "I'm going to the bugle" Peter said, ready to do some crime

research. "Okay be home soon" aunt May said as she kissed his forehead.

Peter took a cab because his detective work required Peter Parker. He approached his partner, Peter kept forgetting his name. "Patchy" Peter whispered into the ears of his

ally. The orange haired man turned around and looked carefully around the room. "I have a new story, I just don't have pictures to prove it." Patchy said. "Don't worry about

the pictures, I have your back" Peter reassured. "Alright" Patchy nodded and said "Supposedly there is this new criminal calling herself grey hound". Peter nodded, pretending

this was new information. "She's working for Hammerhead. I posed as the waiter and planted a recording device on the side of the tray. I heard their conversation. Grey

hound wants to bust someone out of jail and Hammerhead does too. But for some reason, Grey hound is good with security so she's going to steal something from the police.

The access codes to the prison gates." Peter nodded as Patchy continued. "Hammerhead is offering her money in a contract to kill spiderman. She is one of a few hired.

Hammerhead is going to have her steal some time tonight. The location is the main police station in midtown." Patchy said. "That's all I know, there was too much static.

_Static, someone must have been carrying some sort of radio. The static interfered with Patchy's connection. There can be more to the story. _"Okay thanks" Peter said as he

left the Bugle. _I need to find out who Grey Hound is. Criminals don't just show up. She must have some link to these guys. With crime so high, a rookie wouldn't just pop up._

_I'll take a hair sample to the lab and try to narrow down who she is._ Peter changed into spiderman in an alley. He shot webs and decided he would pass time until Grey hound

would strike later. Peter stopped a man from robbing a grocery store. He came from behind and disarmed the man. Then he shot a web and attached_ the _man's body to a

street light. Peter stopped minor crimes like this all day. Finally, the plan would would hatch. The sun set and Peter finished his lunch on a rooftop. Patchy gave Peter a call.

"Okay they're doing it!" Patchy said. Peter thanked him and told him to stay safe. Peter said he would take pictures from the roof. Peter Parker and Patchy wouldn't have to

meet. Peter landed on a roof a few buildings away from the police station. He watched Grey hound enter from an air vent on the police station. Peter entered through a

window. _Great, I lost her already. _Peter tried to locate the air vent Grey hound had used but there were too many. _There must be some control room. That's where she's _

_going to take the access codes._ Peter searched and ran through multiple hallways. Two cops were eating doughnuts and turning a corner. _Must avoid being seen. Too much _

_confusion._ Peter leaped to the ceiling and waited for the cops to pass. Peter would explain to George Stacey some other time. He heard movement in the air vent next to him.

_Lucky me. _He followed the sound of crawling in the air vent until a wall blocked him. He jumped down to see a door with the sign "Authorized personnel only". _This is so the _

_control room._ Peter waited and soon he heard two thuds. _Two guards, unconscious._ _Spider sense, _Peter opened the door and was kicked in the face. He landed on

his back. "Not one for a hello" Peter said as he got up. Grey hound stood in front of him. "This just gets easier and easier" Grey hound said. _Oh really? _Peter reached inside his

costume and speed dialed 911. Grey hound stared at him with confusion. "The costume is a tight fit okay, give me a second." _I have to warn the cops without letting Grey _

_hound know. _Peter felt that someone was on the other line. He kept the phone without speaker so Grey hound wouldn't hear. "You don't realize this is a big deal. You take

out two guards in the room that says 'AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY' in the main headquarters of the new york police department. You came all the way in midtown for

what?" _I'm letting the police know what the situation is and i'm negotiating. I just need a hair sample. _"That isn't your concern" Grey hound snapped. She threw a punch and

Peter dodged. She pulled out a new, shorter whip and swung at Peter's waist. Peter jumped up and saw his chance. He leaped in Grey hound's direction and pulled a piece of

hair out. Grey hound held her head as if Peter set it on fire. Peter tried to trip her from behind but she spun with the whip. Peter tripped and hit his head against the ground.

Grey hound brought both her hands up and gripped the whip tight. "This is for d" Grey hound whispered. Peter couldn't hear the entire sentence because she brought the whip

down. Peter rolled to the side and the whip made a loud _crack _as it hit the ground. _She's trying to kill me for her boss. Her boss' name must start with a 'd'. Donald trump? _

Grey hound unleashed a volley of punches, must of which Peter avoided. _She's really serious about killing me, but why?! _Peter held tight onto the hair he had taken from Grey

hound. Grey hound kicked the side of his face and then his stomach with her other leg. "Why so furious?" Peter asked. "I was offered a chance to take your bounty. And I-my

boss wants to make you suffer" Grey hound said. Peter was trying to wrap his head around what she said. _All the people that have a grudge against me are in jail. Right?!_

Peter heard footsteps and turned to see shadows. Cops approached from both directions of the hallway. Grey hound stopped punching Peter. _Finally. _There were two groups of

three cops. "Put your hands up" Commissioner George Stacy said with a stern expression . Peter shot a web to block the door behind grey hound. She looked around slowly.

"She has the access codes to the prison and she's going to bust someone out" Peter said as he stood up. "Don't make any quick moves or we will shoot" George Stacey

continued. Grey hound frowned as she slowly raised her hands-no her fists. She quickly brought her hands down and multiple pellets hit the ground. Smoke billowed and

Peter could hear George Stacey's voice "Don't shoot! I repeat do NOT fire." Peter looked and saw movement above him. He heard some sort of a charged substance. A piece

of the ceiling collapsed. The room was covered with smoke but the movement cleared some of it. As the ceiling collapsed, Peter heard a cop yell out. At the corner of his eye,

he saw Grey hound jump through a hole in the ceiling. Peter hoped the cop was alright but Grey hound could endanger all the cops in new york. He jumped after her. _She _

_must have the information stored on a USB. _Peter saw her leap from rooftop to rooftop. Peter shot webs and stayed hot on her trail. He shot a web at her body and she was

pinned to a roof. "Now, give me answers!" Peter yelled. She spat at his mask. Peter clenched his fist, remembering he still had her hair in his hand. "What's your damage?!"

Grey hound replied "You're an idiot!". _That explains nothing_. Grey hound was stalling, she reached into her pocket and took out pellets. "Who are you taking out of jail?!"

Peter demanded. "Who is your boss and what the heck did I do to her!?" Peter yelled. Grey hound moved quickly and Peter's spider sense went off. Peter saw a pellet inches

away from his face and to his surprise, it blew up. Peter fell back off the roof and hit a fire escape railing. He clenched the hair sample tight. Peter smashed into a wall and

landed face first onto the floor of an alleyway. A lot of his costume was ripped. His bones ached and his skin burned. _Not to mention the fact she got away. Away with security _

_codes to set every criminal free. At least I have the hair sample. _Peter shot webs and returned to the police station. There was an ambulance outside, only one cop was

critically injured. _She tried to kill me. What does she have against me?! _Peter looked at George Stacey and landed in front of him. "She got away" Peter said shaking his head.

"It's alright. There's not much we can do now. I've sent multiple S.W.A.T. teams surrounding the prison. She's probably already inside. Lets hope no one gets outside" George

Stacey said placing his hand on Peter's shoulder. I'll be there in half an hour" Peter said. _Now to find out what grey hound is. _Peter swung quickly into his neighborhood. He

changed clothes in his backyard and hopped over the fence. He rang the bell and said hello to aunt May. "Peter your face is red. What happened?" aunt May asked. "It's

nothing, not sure how it happened" Peter said. She gave him a weird look and he awkwardly walked upstairs. He grabbed the hair sample and placed it under his microscope.

_Aunt May always told me it was a waste of money. We'll see about that. _Peter switched on the microscope and turned the dials. He switched from high power and low power.

_This is weird, _Peter grew frustrated. He couldn't see any cells. _Did it burn? No, even if it did, some of the cells would be here. Besides, I was holding it tight...So what's _

_wrong?! _Peter continued to adjust the microscope for a few minutes. Then it hit him. _I can't see any cells. I carefully took hair from her head so there's no way it's not hers._

_It's not real hair. She's wearing a wig! She's too young to be losing hair, she looks like she's in her twenty's. She must be hiding her real identity. But why?! She has the mask _

_and the jumpsuit. This time, I'll take off the wig._ Peter was took a little pride in his detective abilities. _Now to visit George Stacey and tell h_-Peter looked at the time. It was

half an hour from midnight. _There's no way aunt May is going to let me leave. I have to go but-_Peter sighed. He went downstairs and wished aunt May goodnight. Peter went

into his room and turned the lights off. He yawned, _time to hit the hay. _Peter picked up his sheets and covered his bed. _Time to pretend i'm hitting the hay._ Peter tucked

clothes under his sheets and over his pillow. He arranged them so it appeared Peter Parker was turned to the side, sleeping. Peter put on his Spiderman costume and jumped

out the window. He closed the window from outside. _No more evidence, check. This is gonna be a long night._

**Note: I'm going to try to post a chapter every other day. Posting every day is going to rush me and that way the chapters are longer and more developed. I hope you enjoyed!**


	10. Chapter 10

Peter shot webs and quickly navigated the city. _The thugs wouldn't have the strength advantage, they don't have any of their powers. I need to find Grey _

_hound and stop her before the criminals can leave the courtyard. _Peter arrived at the maximum security prison and saw crowds of S.W.A.T. teams. He found George

Stacey holding a megaphone and giving orders. Peter landed and walked through the crowd. The S.W.A.T. teams parted and made a path for Peter. The men

he walked past put their guns face down in a show of respect. _Maybe I was wrong about New York hating me._ Peter approached George Stacey "What's the

situation?" Peter asked. "We have no control of the prison, they should be arriving shortly. I'm calling for back up choppers." George Stacey said with a calm

expression. Peter responded "I'm going in there". George Stacey's smile faded, "Be careful, _son". _Peter ran and leaped over the forty foot fence. When he

landed on the other side, he shot webs around the fence. _No one's getting out. Except me, hopefully._ Peter finished webbing the perimeter and he heard a

loud _clank. _Peter turned to see the prison door fly and hit the ground. "Finally, fresh air" Rhino said as he walked out. All the other inmates followed. As Peter predicted, no

one had their powers. _The only real threat would be-spider sense_. Peter jumped up to avoid electricity. _Electro and rhino. _Peter called out "Hey rhino, why are you hiding?".

The rhino pushed through the crowd and charged. "Hey electro, bet you can't shock me from over there" Peter taunted. Peter watched rhino from the corner of his eye.

Electro growled and fired at Peter. Peter jumped up and Rhino was caught in the crossfire. Electro had charged up for that blast, rhino's armor went from grey to black. Electro

yelled out in frustration and rhino shook his head to get rid of the stars he was seeing. The inmates just watched, in the courtyard, there was nothing they could do, outside,

that was another story. Peter dodged electro's shots and kicked rhino in the chest. Rhino tilted forwards, then backwards and then he fell face first. Peter jumped up to avoid

another shot by electro. "Maybe, you should come closer, somewhere within your range" Peter teased. Electro shocked Peter but he fell for it. Electro moved closer. Peter put

his hands under rhino's stomach and picked him up. It required a lot of Peter's strength but this was only part one. Peter threw rhino's body at electro. Electro shocked Peter

but he was too late, Rhino's shadow covered Electro. Electro ran a few steps before he was crushed by rhino. "Get him off!" Electro screamed as he shocked rhino's body.

_That's the second time that worked on him. __I'm not finished here, I need to do something I wouldn't have the heart to. Something I wasn't capable of doing before._ Peter

walked around the inmates. They gave him dirty looks but they didn't bother putting up a fight. In the back of the crowd, Peter found who he was looking for. The nervous,

white-haired cat thief Peter once resented. Peter approached him and the man began sweating. "I want to talk to you" Peter said. "Wha-wh-what is it?" he replied. "I feel like

you're sorry for what you did to my uncle. You sacrificed and instead of escaping jail, you took out the cons and yourself. You were the one who turned on the gas, you were

the hero. I haven't thought clearly for a while, but I learned that if we think with our emotions rather than our heads, we sometimes make mistakes" Peter said. The cat thief

relaxed a bit and saw his opportunity. "I'm_ terribly sorry, _I'm sorry for killing your uncle. I didn't realize what I had done. I held the guilt from that day forward-" The cat thief

said. Peter cut him off "Don't pressure yourself with guilt. Don't let regret waste your life. I once did that and wasted away. You don't have to hold the guilt of killing my uncle

anymore..._I forgive you" _Peter said sincerely. "The cat thief's eyes widened. "Really?!" he asked. Peter had never seen an expression besides sadness and nervousness in this

mans face. But he was actually smiling. "Yes" Peter said. In his heart, Peter knew he made uncle Ben proud. _Revenge is never justified._

Grey hound watched the courtyard from the fifth floor. "C'mon, where are you?!" she whispered. She scanned and saw a red and blue costume and-yes! Time to bust you

out. Grey hound landed and walked through the crowd of inmates. The con men teased her. One got too close and Grey hound kicked him in the stomach. She approached

spiderman. _Spider sense, _Peter turned and Grey hound was coming his way. He leaped up and shot a web at her head. Peter pulled the wig right off. The crowd gasped and so

did Peter. She had _white_ hair. _The voice, the fighting style, the hair, the whip, the jumpsuit._ Peter was enraged. Grey hound kept calm and was a few feet away

from Peter when she stopped. "Grey hound?! More like Black Cat!" Peter mocked. Black Cat shrugged her shoulders. She reached for her eyes and pulled something away.

_Contacts, to make me think she had blue eyes._ _"_You tried to kill me_" _Peter said with disgust. "If I wanted to kill, I would. I couldn't bring myself to do it" Black cat said.

"Felicia!" the cat thief yelled out. "You tried to kill him?!" the cat thief asked. "She caused this!" Peter said pointing at his ripped and burned suit. "Why are you here?" the cat

thief asked. "I thought you would know why, to bust you out" Black Cat had water in her eyes. "I'm not leaving here, not breaking out at least" the cat thief said. Black Cat

felt abandoned. "Why did you deceive me" Peter growled. "You were going to let my dad rot in here for the rest of his life!" She argued. "Felicia, you don't know the story" the

cat thief said. Black Cat looked at him with a confused expression. "I killed this man's uncle" the cat thief said looking at Peter. Felicia stared with horror. "I knew it was only

right for me to stay behind and pass out with the criminals. Today, this young man forgave me. He has wisdom that far exceeds my own." the cat thief said looking at Peter.

"Instead of trying to hurt him, you should learn from him" The cat thief said. Felicia shook her head with disbelief. "Why" she whispered. "I made a mistake Felicia, now leave

before you make yours" the cat thief said with his hands on her shoulders. Peter didn't know what to think. An odd turn of events, he forgives the man who murdered his

uncle but that man has a daughter that betrayed Peter. A helicopter whirred overhead. _That's not a police chopper. _The helicopter dropped a large box into the courtyard.

Everyone turned and stared as the box opened as it landed. To Peter's disappointment, the box contained weapons. The cons rushed and grabbed them.

"Felicia, run!", the cat thief yelled. "No...I'm going to stay here and fight. It's only right." Black Cat responded. Peter said "Get to safety" and the cat thief ran. "I'm-sorry"

Black Cat said with a worried expression. "Not just for betraying you. I-made a deal with Hammerhead and-Hammerhead was going to pay me for helping the sinister six

escape", Black Cat said as she stared at the ground. She reached for his hand and said "_Please_, I won't ever do something like this again" Black Cat pleaded. "It's just the

money and revenge clouded my judgement" she said. Peter looked at her. _If I don't forgive her, that would be pretty hypocritical. Considering the speech I gave to the cat _

_thief. _Peter squeezed Black Cat's hand and her eyes widened. "You're forgiven" Peter whispered. He looked into her eyes and she looked into his. He realized he still had

feelings for her. Under the moonlight, she looked unearthly. "Aww look at the arachnid couple" Doctor Octopus teased. Peter turned to see every con armed. Each criminal

had their suit and if they didn't they had knives. "I won't let anything happen to you" Peter said, giving Black Cat's hand another squeeze before letting go. Black Cat thought

their moment was very sweet. She nodded and they faced their rivals. Doctor Octopus tried to grab Peter with one arm and Peter jumped. He tried again and Peter cart

wheeled. Peter stepped on the third arm and ran along it. He kicked Doctor Octopus's face and did a back flip. Peter shot web pellets as con men surrounding Black Cat. Peter

landed and his spider senses would not stop going off. Shocker fired and Peter jumped. The con men behind Peter fell to the ground after being blown away. Peter shot webs

at the unconscious men to ensure they stayed down. Kraven jumped to tackle Black Cat from behind. Peter shot a web at Kraven's back and pulled him away just before

Shocker fired at Peter. Peter hit the ground, rolled over and tumbled over some more. He got up and dodged electro's shots. He kept backing away until his back touched

something-someone rather. He turned and saw Black Cat smiling. "Duck!" she yelled. Peter crouched quickly as she swung her whip and hit a prisoner in the stomach. He fell

to the ground. Peter jumped over her and shot a web at a criminal. He held on to the web and did a front flip. He launched this man into a crowd of con men. They all fell to

the ground and Peter secured them with webbing. Peter fell forwards after electro shocked him and shocker's waves pushed him. Electro was prepared to fire again but this

time he aimed at Black cat, Peter shot a web at her leg and tripped her. The electricity barely missed her. Shocker fired but Peter rolled out of the way. Doctor Octopus had

his metallic arms spin and he tried to cut Peter. Peter slid under an arm. A second arm came but Peter did a back flip. Black Cat tripped a con man trying to stab Peter from

behind. Peter continued to avoid Doctor Octopus's arms. Peter moved a group of con men in front of Doctor Octopus with his webs. Electro fired at Peter and Peter jumped in

front of Doctor Octopus. Peter quickly shot webs at Doctor Octopus's arms so he was stuck holding a group of criminals. Electro fired again as Doctor Octopus screamed

"No!". Peter rolled to the side and Doctor Octopus was hit. The electricity not only shocked Doctor Octopus, but it traveled along his metal arms and shocked the inmates he

was stuck to. Peter shot a web and secured them all to the ground. There was a battle going outside. Peter could hear gunshots and helicopters as well as yelling. Peter turned

and Vulture was flying with a captive Black Cat. Electro and Shocker were standing on opposite sides of Peter and they both fired. Peter was warned by his spider sense so he

leaped out of the way just in time. The result was a clash of electricity and shocker's wave. The energy kept building up and made a loud pulsing and vibrating sound. The

energy exploded and everyone in a 20 foot radius was electrocuted and pushed back. Peter was in the air but he was still hit. Peter fell uncomfortably on his side. He saw

Black Cat struggling against Vulture. The vulture bashed her into the prison windows. "Get your hands-feet off her!" Peter yelled. "As you wish" Vulture said as he dropped

Black Cat. Peter ran to catch her but an inmate swung at Peter with a knife. Peter tried to avoid it but he was cut. Peter retaliated and kicked the knife out of the man's hand.

Peter quickly shot a web pellet and leaped from the man's shoulders to catch a fearful Black Cat. Peter did a dolphin dive and reached as far as he could. He caught her and

scraped his stomach as he fell. "Thanks" Black Cat said. Peter's stomach burned and as he looked up, Vulture kicked him in the face. Peter reached up and shot two webs, one

on each wing of vulture. Silver Manfredi punched Peter in the stomach and the face multiple times but Peter kept his grip on the web. Black Cat kicked the back of Silver

Manfredi's head and he fell to the ground. Peter pulled Vulture like a kite and launched him into a group of running inmates. Peter shot webs to secure the con men to the

ground. Molten Man was in normal form hiding inside the prison with the cat thief. "That's my daughter" the cat thief said pointing at Black Cat

jumping up to kick two men in the face. Peter's spider sense tingled, he turned to see Electro fire at Black Cat. Electro was barely sitting up after his clash with shocker. There

was nothing Peter could do but watch as Black Cat was hit. Her body shook and her hair stood up as she was electrocuted. "FELICIA!" Peter and the cat thief screamed. Black

Cat fell to the ground. Peter shot web pellets at electro's face and Electro fell down. Peter ran and held Black Cat in her arms. She could barely keep her eyes open. She

coughed and Peter felt sick._ I __promised to keep her safe._ "Are you okay?" he asked, his voice shaking. In the background, shocker tried to aim at Peter but Mark/molten man

kicked his face. "I'm fine" she managed. Peter caressed her face and put her hair behind her ears. He looked into her eyes, she wasn't hurt as badly as she could have been.

Peter said "I'll always be here". Black Cat sat up slowly. She winced as she was getting up. "I need to tell you some-thing." Black Cat said. The cat thief was running towards

his daughter. "What is it?" Peter asked. "I'm-engaged", she said after taking off her mask. Her face was ashy except for the part where her mask had been. She had golden,

almond shaped eyes. Peter gazed into her eyes and felt a twinge of jealousy. He pushed his thoughts away and felt happy for her. "That's great" he said. "But

I don't love him" Black Cat said sitting up on her own. _Yay for me, _Peter instantly regretted having that thought. The cat thief and Mark approached them."Felicia, are you

alrght!?" the cat thief asked with a worried expression. "I'm great daddy, just-can you give us a moment?" Black Cat said. He hugged her and he left with Mark. "Why don't

you love him?" Peter asked. "I mean, he treats me well but he's so secretive. _I barely know him._ Besides, I'm in love with someone else." _Who?! _Peter's thoughts raced. Black

Cat saw his confused expression and said "I'm in love with you, silly". Peter felt as if he landed in a flower garden. "But you barely know me" Peter said. "Your a guy who is

well disciplined, someone who fights valiantly for justice. Forgiving and funny." Black Cat said as she looked into his soul. She held his hand and looked at him. Parts of his

mask were torn so one of his eyes was exposed. _That sums it up...maybe me and her were meant to be. Two romantic freelancers-No. There's Gwen, I can't let her down. She _

_doesn't know i'm spiderman but I'll __tell her the truth. _Peter felt ashamed for his thoughts. _I can't be with two girls; one with spiderman and one with Peter Parker. _"You may

know me but I think it's best if we stay the way we are. Allies that are trustful and faithful" Peter said slowly removing his hand from hers. Black Cat frowned and bit her lip.

"As long as you promise to meet me at the empire state building at night each day" she said. "I'm not sure I can do that each day, but I'll try my best" Peter promised.

"Alright" she said, kissing his exposed cheek. Peter got up, painfully, and shot webs at unconscious inmates on the ground. Everyone was secure. Black Cat talked to her

father and Peter jumped over the prison fence. There were many sirens as ambulances traveled in and out of the street. The ambulance carried injured officers and Peter

searched for George Stacey. Peter looked around and saw a battle had just occurred between thugs and the S.W.A.T. team. Peter could not find George Stacey. _Did he go _

_home? _"Where is Commissioner George Stacey?" Peter asked a S.W.A.T. officer. "He's in the hospital" the man replied.


	11. Chapter 11

**Note: this is going to be a very slow chapter.**

Peter was shocked. "What happened?!" he asked the officer. "He was shot in the shoulder , he was rushed to the nearest hospital" the S.W.A.T. officer

replied. _Gwen's father is hurt, it could be serious. I should visit him as Peter Parker tomorrow morning. Still need to pay for Mark's bail, he didn't do anything wrong. I also _

_need __tickets to the dance-and a good night's rest. _Peter thanked the officer and decided he would head home.

Black Cat talked to her father. "Daddy, I think I'll give up stealing." she said smiling. "I'm glad your making a good decision.. Are you sure you want to marry that guy you

told me about?" the cat thief asked. "No, actually, I think I should know him better before I do something I'll regret" Black Cat said. "Just don't rush it, find out what you want

and who makes you feel special. But for now, get out of here, I doubt you committed a crime serious enough to be here. The police are going to open the gate... I love you

sweetheart." the cat thief said hugging her. "So, this is your home now?" she asked. "You know this is where I belong" the cat thief replied. "Just stay safe and be careful who

you trust. Think before you act" the cat thief called out as Black Cat began sprinting.

Peter almost didn't have the strength to pull his window open. He dragged himself into his room and sluggishly changed his clothes. It was 2 am. Peter crawled into bed. As

soon as Peter covered himself with his bed sheet, he fell asleep. He woke up the next morning at noon. _Spiderman needs to get paid extra for working overtime. _Peter yawned

and got up. His muscles were sore so Peter took his time walking downstairs. "Hey aunt May" Peter called. "Good morning" she said. "I'm going to see Anna May Watson

today. I'll be back late" aunt May said. "I'm going to the bugle" Peter said. They both went their separate ways and Peter arrived at the Bugle. Peter noticed Ms. Brant was a

little too close to one of the editors. Mr. Jameson was yelling at someone in his office. "Get out of my office! Bring me something that doesn't sound like it's on a children's

show! Ms. Brant, that's not the position I hired you for! Parker, bring me the photo's!" Peter rushed into the office and put his photos on the desk. "How did you get-never

mind, take your check from Ms. Brant." Peter walked up to Ms. Brant and thanked her as she gave him his check. Peter walked up to Patchy and asked "What's the latest?".

Patchy said "The blueprints for rhino's armor are being auctioned again, supposedly this time it's the real deal." "How do you get this information?! Also, when and where will

this happen?" Peter asked. "I guess I'm a good waiter, it's the same location as last time, tomorrow at 10" Patchy said. _Phew, that's after the dance, but I'll have to meet up _

_with __Black Cat first. _Peter thanked him and left. Peter then went to the hospital to visit George Stacey. When he arrived, he searched for the room number. Peter checked

door numbers and finally found it. Peter brought flowers and he knocked on the door. "Come in" George Stacey said. Peter walked inside and saw George Stacey sitting up in

his bed. Gwen was sitting in one of the chairs in the room. He waved at her and said "Are you alright Mr. Stacey?". "I'm better now. How did you know I was here? The press

wasn't informed where I was transported" George Stacey said. _What are you implying. _Peter gave a nervous smile and said "You know photographers, we always know the

scoop". Peter placed the flowers on a table next to George Stacey. "Did you get any photo's of spiderman yesterday?" George Stacey said eyeing Peter carefully. _Why is he _

_asking me this? _"No-I mean yes. There was a brawl at the prison, I saw it from a couple of buildings away" Peter answered. _I can't lie, he'll __see the pictures on the _

_newspaper._ "That's a pretty nice camera then" George Stacey said. _There is no way he doesn't know. He's hinting at something, definitely. _"I just remembered, I need to pay

the Bugle a visit" Peter said desperate to change the subject. "Now? Could you stay a little longer?" George Stacey asked. "I suppose so" Peter said. "I heard the spring dance

is tomorrow. Are you going Peter?", George Stacey asked. "Yes uh, I actually planned on going with Gwen", Peter said. "Planned? You sound unsure" George Stacey said,

surprised. "No, no I'm pretty sure" Peter said as he looked at Gwen. She was blushing slightly. "Gwen, how come you didn't tell me?" George Stacey teased. "You were busy, I

actually wasn't going to go until Peter asked me. But then the deadline for tickets was friday..." Gwen said. "Really? Now that's a problem" George Stacey said. "Actually, I

have my ways", Peter said as he pulled out two tickets he bought on the way to the Bugle. A boy from Peter's school didn't want to go and he offered Peter the tickets. Gwen's

eyes widened and she thought, _he's the one._ "I'm impressed" George Stacey said. "It was nothing-really. Is-Gwen allowed to go?" Peter asked nervously. "As long as she is

with you", George Stacey said smiling. Gwen and Peter smiled at each other. "Mr. Stacey, can I have a moment with Gwen?" Peter asked. _Time to tell her the truth. _"Sure"

George Stacey replied. As Peter and Gwen walked out, George Stacey gave Peter another smile. "Gwen, I need to tell you something crazy. It's going to be difficult to believe

but I trust you to believe me" Peter said, looking around. Gwen nodded slowly. _Is he in love with someone else?!, _Gwen thought. "Remember when-doctor Conners turned

into the Lizard and I ran away? Then the Bugle had my pictures on the front page of the paper?" Peter asked. Gwen frowned, "I remember". "Remember when criminals

attacked the ice rink and you thought I was trapped under the fallen Christmas tree?" Peter asked. "You had me so worried" Gwen said furrowing her eyebrows. "As soon as I

disappeared, spiderman showed up. Have you ever noticed that me and him were never at the same place at the same time?" Peter asked. "I-actually never thought of it

that way. Wait-are you saying..." Gwen gasped. Peter nodded. "Have you ever wondered why I'm the only photographer that gets 70 story pictures of spiderman?" Peter

asked. Gwen pieced the puzzle together. "When you left the valentines day party for the Bugle?" Gwen asked. "Exactly" Peter responded. "Believe me, _I'm spiderman" _Peter

whispered. Gwen didn't want to believe it but it made so much sense. Peter would always leave whenever crime was happening. He used the Bugle as his cover up and would

be the only photographer to get spectacular shots of spiderman. "Thank you for being honest" Gwen said looking into his eyes. "You still-wan't to go to the dance with me? I

don't reveal my identity because I don't want to endanger my loved ones. But I felt I should be honest" Peter said. "Why wouldn't I go to the dance with you! You've always

been so suspicious but now that I know why I can kind of understand the recent struggles" Gwen said. _She is perfect. I didn't have to explain. I never thought I'd be able to _

_put so much trust in one person. "_Wait, did you kill Harry's father?!" she whispered. "No, it was a misunderstanding. Harry's father was the green goblin, he killed himself

trying to kill me. Harry died at the hands of a villain" Peter said, remembering the painful events that occurred. "At least you're not a killer" Gwen said hugging him. "Thanks

for understanding" Peter said. "Thanks for telling the truth" Gwen said. He held her hand and said "You're the only one I can trust with this information." Peter said. _He really _

_knows how to make me special, _Gwen thought as a smile danced on her lips. They both entered the room and Peter wished the Stacey's goodbye. _One heck of a family._

Peter walked out of the hospital and to a station house. Peter payed for Mark Allan's bail by signing aunt May's signature and depositing the money he earned from the Bugle.

_I can probably get arrested for doing this. I need to be eighteen. Whatever, I'm doing a good thing._

In maximum security, behind bars, Mark Allan sat down on his bed and stared at the wall. He thought about the gambling and his debt that was payed off at a horrible price.

Mark remembered the curse he was given, he was transformed into a fiery creature and he was told he could change back to normal. He later found out it was an experiment

and his transformations would occur via remote control. Mark thought about Liz and how she had been a wonderful young sister. Mark regretted all the betting he ever did. He

wished more than anything that he could be released. A security guard walked up to Mark's cell. _Weird, it's not lunch time. _"You're free to go" the officer said. _Was this a sick _

_joke?! _"Are you serious?!" Mark asked with bewilderment. "Yeah, lighten up kid", the officer chuckled. "How?" Mark asked, still astonished. "Someone payed your bail. You

didn't have any serious crimes so court won't be necessary." Mark wanted to walk outside and kiss the ground. "Wait-who payed my bail?!" Mark asked, desperate to know.

"May Parker" the officer said while he escorted Mark out of jail. _Parker?! What?! Wow. _Mark wanted to give Peter Parker a hug as he took a cab home.

Peter didn't have anything to do when it got dark, so he headed to the empire state building. He saw a black shape sitting next to the antenna. Peter shot a web and swung

onto the empire state building. He leaped a couple of stories and finally scaled the building. Black Cat was waiting for him kicking her legs. "How the heck did you even get up

here" Peter asked. "I have my ways" Black Cat said with her nail trailing Peter's spider logo. Peter said "Anyways, what was it?". "I'm engaged to Roderick Kingsley but I don't

love him". Peter's eyes widened. Roderick Kingsley was a billionaire and he offered 500 million to pay for the blueprints to rhino's armor. "Nope, don't think it's a good idea.

He is a _bad bad man" _Peter said. Black Cat cocked her head "You know him?". "Yeah, he's a pretty rich _criminal" _Peter said. "Is that why, or is it because you want me all to

yourself" Black Cat said as she scooted closer to Peter. "No, i'm serious, if you don't know him well, do not marry him" Peter said. _I may like her but I'm doing this for her _

_sake. _"Don't get so defensive. And why did you choose a red and blue costume, and not, lets say, a black costume?" Black Cat asked. "The colors have meanings. Why do we

have to meet again?" Peter asked. "Aww don't tell me i'm boring you. I just want to know you better." Black Cat said. Peter breathed out as a bank alarm went off. "We'll I

need to go. See you", Peter said happily. Peter jumped off the building leaving Black Cat feeling hurt. _Oh i'll show him, _Black Cat thought.

Peter shot his camera on the roof of the building and set it to auto-shoot. Peter entered the bank through a window in the back. He crawled onto the ceiling. Three masked

men with ak-47's were yelling for money and firing bullets to frighten people. _They just don't give up. They are all facing one direction so I need to lure them away from each _

_other. _Peter shot a web to the far right corner of the bank. Peter purposely aimed at a glass pen holder. The glass shattered and the men turned. "What the _hell _was that?!"

one of the thugs asked. "I think it was one of the civilians, shut them up" the man in the middle said. The thug to the right went to investigate as the others continued to

intimidate the people of the bank. Peter shot webs at the mans gun muzzle and his mouth. Peter shot another web and pulled the thug to the ceiling. Peter patted the thug as

he rested in his web cocoon. _Sleep tight. _One of the windows shattered and the thugs turned. _I did not do that. That was not on my list of super powers. _Peter turned to see

Black Cat barrel roll. The thugs aimed their guns but Peter shot them with webs. Black Cat threw shurikens and the men screamed as they were cut. "Black Cat! What are you

doing?!" Peter yelled. One of the men was bleeding from his eye because the blade punctured his eyeball. "Helping" Black Cat said. Peter told one of the civilians to call the

cops. There was a pool of blood under the men. "They could have died!" Peter said with disgust. They both walked out and Peter retrieved his camera. Peter frowned "I didn't

ask for your help. If you ever work with spiderman, _you never, ever, kill" _Peter said. Black Cat was annoyed "Why do you care for them, you send them to prison anyway!".

"Yeah but prison beats_ dying_ any day. Look, just don't do that again. You didn't even tell me you were coming" Peter said. "You didn't give me a chance!" Black Cat

complained. "Maybe your right." Peter said as he sighed. "If we find crime, you _follow my lead_" Peter said slowly. Black Cat nodded. Later as they traveled through the city,

they noticed a man with a pistol threatening a deli owner. "Ok, this is simple, the most we do is beat them unconscious. He's one guy so i'm going to let you try. DON'T KILL

HIM and don't let anyone get hurt." Peter warned. "Why do you do this-saving of civilians?." Black Cat asked as she studied him. "I made a mistake and I was taught to use

my powers to the greatest good they are capable of" Peter responded. Black Cat nodded, _very interesting. _She jumped and landed a few feet from the deli entrance. The

armed man shouted "Put the money in the bag!" and Black Cat snuck behind him. She swung at his ribs, then at his legs. Peter's eyes widened as the armed man fell to the

ground. The man tried to reach for his gun but Black Cat kicked it away and then she kicked his face. The man passed out and Black Cat took the shopping bag with money.

Black Cat returned the money to the deli owner but she took a stack of twenty's before she handed the bag over. Peter shot a web pellet at her hand and she dropped the

money. She gave Peter a dirty look as she returned the rest of the money. Peter took pictures of everything, more variety, more Bugle Checks for me. She leaped up onto the

ledge "How did I do?" she asked smiling at him. "Not too shabby, next time don't try to steal any money" Peter said wagging his finger. She blushed as he gave her a nudge.

"Blact Cat and Spiderman, the unstoppable team" Peter said as he put his hands in the air. Black Cat wanted to be his soulmate not just his teamate. They continued through

the city, roof top to roof top.


	12. Chapter 12

**Valentines day is coming soon. Here's some romance for ya! Thanks for the reviews!**

After a long night of crime fighting, Peter returned home and fell asleep instantly. He woke up and yawned. _Today is the dance. 7 pm and I have to arrive _

_sharp. _Peter got ready and he said good morning to aunt May. He swung through the city, watching the buildings zoom past him. He arrived and changed in

the janitors closet. Peter opened the door to see two kids discussing something. "I'll trade you my platinum card for two of your silver cards." The other kid responded "No way,

two silver cards are worth more than a platinu-", he stopped to look at Peter emerging from the janitor's closet. Peter slowly walked out and a broom hit his head. Peter held

the broom but then a mop and a dust pan fell. Peter held everything and one of the boy's asked "What were you doing in the janitor's closet?". "I-uh-left something inside. Me

and the janitor, we go way back, we mopped up the lunchroom so I came back to get my-scarf" Peter said. "Uh, you don't have a scarf" the other boy said. "It's in my bag"

Peter said as the bell rang. He closed the door to the janitors closet and hurried to class. Peter breathed out a sigh of relief. Peter's day went quickly. At lunch he sat next to

Gwen. "I won't be late today, promise" Peter said before even saying hello. Gwen waved her hand and said "Don't worry if you are, besides, you told me why you're always

late." Peter felt calm, _totally forgot I told her. "_Ok, and how did you like that calculus test?" Peter asked.

Peter walked home and worried. _The auctioning of rhino's armor is today, what if that interferes with the dance? _Peter sighed and opened the door. He walked into the kitchen

and hugged aunt May. He walked upstairs and finished his homework. He listened to his music as he was working. _It's times like this I wonder what Flash Thompson is__ doing._

Flash was in the shower and he was singing as he rubbed soap on his arms. "Living on the edge, fighting crime, spinning webs. Swinging from the highest ledge, he could leap

up on my heaaddd. AaaaAaaaaAaaaahaaaAaa...Spec-tacular spec-tacular spiderma-" Flash was interrupted. His mom was knocking on the door. "Eugene Thompson, are you

singing power rangers again?!" she asked. "No mom, kids in my school get bullied for doing things like that" Flash said as his cheeks turned red. "Well then hurry up, you're

going to be late for the dance!" his mom warned.

Peter got dressed after taking a shower. He put on his dress shirt and coat. He combed his hair and put on a bit of cologne. He walked out of his room and aunt May said "You

look handsome, Peter. Better hurry, it's 6:30." Peter kissed her forehead and headed to Gwen's house. He knocked on the door and George Stacey opened. "Hello, Peter,

come in and sit down" George Stacey said as he made a gesture towards a chair. Peter nodded and sat down. "You know how women are, it may be a while" George Stacey

said as he looked at his watch. Peter chuckled nervously and waited. "So, Peter, how is it going with the Bugle? Are you getting shots of spiderman?" George Stacey asked.

"Yes, it's going well. I was actually planning on getting photos today after the dance" Peter said. _I know you know i'm spiderman, no need for subliminals. Sheesh, it's like call _

_of duty: psychological warfare. "_How can you be sure that you will see spiderman?" George Stacey asked. "I have a lead on the villains and supposedly spiderman will be

in action" Peter said. George Stacey nodded and Peter heard footsteps. Gwen was taking her time walking downstairs. Peter's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. She was

wearing a shiny velvet dress. She had her hair straightened and she had silver ear rings. Her eyelashes and eyebrows looked as if they took hours to get right. Her piercing

blue eyes made Peter's heart race. She didn't have too much make up on and she was wearing high heels. Her dress trailed behind her. "Hi Peter" she said smiling. "G-Gwen,

you look-gorgeous" Peter barely managed. She blushed in response and George Stacey smiled. "I'll let you two off on your own. Be back by ten!" George Stacey said. Peter

got up and opened the door for Gwen. Together they walked to the dance. It wasn't far so Peter didn't have much time to get his emotions straight. "Gwen, I'm sorry I didn't

tell you sooner. I felt-horrible when everyone thought I abandoned doctor Connors. I ran away so I could change" Peter said. Gwen tuned and looked at him. "It's okay. Stop

stressing over it. I can never bring myself to hate you." she said smiling. Peter smiled back and held her hand. They laced fingers and continued walking. When they arrived,

Peter was impressed. There was an outdoor area right next to the ocean. Peter could see the city skyline. The lamps and the moon were the source of light. There was a dj

and most of the crowd had already arrived. When Peter and Gwen walked near the mini cafe area, Flash Thompson smiled at Peter and said "It's about time". Peter nodded

and said "Not too shabby yourself". Flash grinned and looked at Shashanna. Randy emerged from the crowd and said "Touchdown!" when he saw Peter and Gwen. Liz was

also there and to Peter's surprise, she waved. He waved back and someone patted his back. Peter turned to see none other than Mark Allan and Mary Jane. "I know what you

did. Thanks, and i'm sorry for the things I said" Mark whispered in his ear. Peter nodded and waved at Mary Jane. When Gwen and Peter were alone, they sat at the table.

Peter pulled out a chair for Gwen and pushed it in after she sat. _Being a gentlemen 101, thanks for the advice Uncle Ben. _"What did you do for Mark?" Gwen asked. "I payed

for his bail with many weeks worth of Bugle money. He didn't do anything wrong." Peter whispered. Gwen looked surprised. "That's really nice of you" she said, staring into

his eyes. "Hey, the Bugle isn't just an excuse to get away from my friends" Peter joked. He leaned in close and said "Enough about the Bugle, enough about Spiderman. You

and I are here, together, finally. There is so much I want you to know." Peter said to Gwen. Gwen tried very hard to hide her excitement. "Remember when I was being pelted

with waterballoons? You stood in front of me and spread out your arms. That was the bravest thing I have seen a girl do. I didn't stand up to those guys but you were there

for me. Thank you". Gwen nodded as she brushed her hair behind her ear. "When I first saw you, I thought 'dreams really do come true'. Ever since then, you proved me

right. _You have everything I could ever ask for and more" _Peter said taking her hand. Gwen was speechless. "Really?" "Yes, you are the _smartest, most beautiful, kindest and _

_most humble girl I have met in my entire life. _Your grades are top notch, you understand everything and everyone. You never lash out with anger, you are extremely polite

and courteous" Peter said. _Pinch me, am I dreaming?_, Gwen thought. Music began playing. Peter said "I wish I had said this sooner. So many things got between us. I won't

ever leave your side, Gwen." Peter said as he squeezed her hand gently. "Thank you, thank you so much. The entire year I was worried that-you didn't feel the same way I

did about you. Peter, you always show up to school, you face the baddest men on the planet and you never turn to arrogance. You were the only one that stood up to Flash

last year. You're also smart, funny, brave and protective, you saved my life so many times. I'm sorry for ever doubting you. I doubted you when you ran from doctor

Connors's transformation. I know now that you were the one who saved me. You're just _perfect, _Peter" Gwen said locking eye contact. Peter smiled and said "I love you." "I

love you too" Gwen said. Peter got up "Would you care to dance?", he said as he held out his hand. Gwen took it and they walked to the rail by the shore. "The glistening

ocean under the moonlight, the skyline, your face, it's all just _amazing" _Peter said. Gwen's cheeks flushed red and she smiled. Peter put his hands around her waist and she

put her hands on his shoulders. They slow danced, never breaking eye contact. "Remember when you were trapped in a cage and I rescued you from electro and doc Ock?"

Peter asked as Gwen nodded. "You were unconscious and I was pinned under a giant piece of metal. I couldn't move and the whole place began flooding. I tried and I tried to

push the metal off but it was no use. I was going to give up" Peter said. "Then what happened?" Gwen asked as they continued to dance. "I looked at you and I thought

'Gwen needs me. I can't give in'. So I got this burst of strength, my costume ripped because of how hard I was trying. I pushed the metal off and picked you up." Peter said.

"Wow-I-didn't know. That was really sweet, Peter" Gwen said. "You give me strength, Gwen. Just the thought of you is enough to make my heart race and to make me keep

trying." Peter said. Gwen poked Peter. "Is this really Peter, or is it an impostor? I never knew you were so romantic" Gwen teased as she narrowed her

eyes. Peter shrugged his shoulders and said "I kept myself hidden from you. There was an entire side of me you didn't know about." Peter said as he looked down. "Don't you

punish yourself, Peter. Your spiderman, and I love that._ But I love Peter Parker more."_ Gwen said as she stroked his face. Peter touched her hand and said "That's why I love

you, you understand." Peter said smiling. "I wish I could dance with you forever" Peter said as they danced side to side. "Me too" Gwen said. "Gravity pulls on me and you and

pushes everyone else." Peter said. Gwen giggled, "Do you write this stuff down, or rehearse? Excellent execution" she clapped. "I don't ever want to leave" Gwen said moving

closer to Peter. "Me neither" Peter said as he was inches away from Gwen's face. Peter leaned slowly and Gwen did too. She closed her eyes and Peter did too. Before he knew

it, their lips were locked in a full contact kiss. Peter heard sounds from the crowd but he drowned it out. It was the most amazing kiss Peter had ever experienced. Peter felt

fireworks go off inside him. For once in his life, Peter forgot about everyone in the world but Gwen. _Thank god __I put on my strawberry chap stick. _Peter wanted it to last

forever but eventually they separated. Gwen smiled and Peter whispered "That was-awesome". "I always wanted a kiss that we both agreed on." Gwen said. "I'm glad this

time you didn't leave." Peter responded. A new song played and Peter grinned like an idiot and said "Round two". This wasn't a slow song. Peter took Gwen's hand and picked

it up. He spun her around and grabbed her back as he lowered her. Gwen didn't want to stop looking in his eyes. When they finished their current dance, Gwen said "Where

did you learn to do that?! I didn't know you were such a wonderful dancer". "Whenever I'm with you, I just feel _right. _I always wanted to try that though." Peter said. He

told her to hold on as he grabbed some refreshments. He checked his watch and it read 9 pm._ Time flies, like my heart, when I'm with Gwen. _Peter brought punch for Gwen

and Flash gave Peter the thumbs up. Peter nodded and walked back to Gwen. He noticed Liz was dancing with someone, happily. _Everything, it's all just so perfect. _Peter gave

Gwen the punch and they drank besides the railing. They watched the waves crash into rocks and the moonlight brightened Gwen's face. She looked simply _stunning_. He held

her hand again. "The skyline, it's so beautiful, the city lights. I'm glad I can enjoy it with you" Gwen said with her hands on Peter's chest. "Velvet nail polish too?! You went all

out with the matching" Peter complimented. "I'm glad you noticed" Gwen said as she looked away and back at him again. A breeze blew in and Gwen held her shoulders.

Peter took his coat off and wrapped it around Gwen. "Lets sit down" Peter said with his hand around her. "Who taught you to be such a gentlemen?" Gwen asked with a

curious expression. "My uncle Ben, he taught me everything." Peter said, realizing Uncle Ben was his hero. He looked out to the sea "He's also the reason I became

spiderman. I made a mistake and because of me, he died." Peter frowned. "Gwen stroked his hand. "Don't blame yourself, Peter. You're only human. We all make mistakes.

Those who don't realize their mistakes, those are the people that should be worried. You save countless lives, bring happiness to New York everyday and you make my heart

soar whenever you're with me." Gwen reassured. Peter sipped his punch and grinned ear-to-ear. "You're the one." Peter said. Gwen smiled back and she was going to say

something but Peter's phone rang. "One sec" Peter said as he picked up. It was patchy, the rhino armor was being sold. Peter's expression turned serious and Gwen noticed

this. Peter looked at his watch, it was 9:35. "Thugs selling rhino armor. They can create an army o-" "It's fine, the city needs you" Gwen interrupted giving him a reassuring

nudge. _In your eyes I see, all the love i'll ever need._ Peter kissed her on the cheek and Gwen said "Go kick some butt". "I'll try to be back to drop you off." Peter said. He left

his coat on Gwen's shoulders and walked out of the dance.


	13. Chapter 13

Peter swung through the city. He tried to forget about Gwen but there was nothing he could do. She was all he could think about. Her shiny red lipstick, her red heels, the

nails, the dress, she was fantastic. Peter willed himself to call Patchy. Peter talked to Patchy and told him he was nearing. Peter arrived and changed in an alleyway. He was

still in a dress shirt. He walked up to Patchy, who jumped when Peter put his hand on him. "Don't scare me like that!" Patchy said, clearly alarmed. Peter smiled and Patchy

was listening to the device he had in his hand. _I can't believe they don't suspect the waiter for eavesdropping. Patchy does it again, he sneaks into a villain-only auction and_

_plants a recording device. _Peter listened to the device, people were arguing. A female voice said "500 million" and then another voice said, 750 million. Everyone was

murmuring and Peter heard a mullet hit something. A man who sounded like the auction-er said "So, it's settled. Hammerhead gets the grand prize."_ Hammerhead?! I better _

_get to work. I __know there's gonna be a fight afterwords. _"I better get some pictures" Peter said as he walked away from a nodding Patchy. Peter walked many blocks from the

scene to change into his costume. N_eed to get back for Gwen. _Peter put on his suit and shot a web to the top of a building. He waited for the criminals to exit. He saw

Hammerhead leave with his driver. Peter followed a block behind the car. Peter made sure he was out of sight. Hammerhead soon stopped by a warehouse. Peter couldn't move

any closer without being seen. Peter climbed into the window of the building he was standing on. A helicopter whirred overhead and Peter ducked so the window wouldn't give

his position away. He waited for the helicopter to fly over him. The sound of the helicopter faded away but it was still nearby. _It's probably silver sable. _Peter peaked out the

window and he heard gunshots. Peter shot a web on the window and attached his camera. Peter crawled out and set the camera to auto-shoot. Silver Sable was firing what

appeared to be giant staples at Hammerhead. Hammerhead was still in the car but the staples started piercing the roof of his car. A ladder protruded out of the helicopter and

Silver Sable climbed down. Hammerhead kicked the car door open and Peter was shocked. Hammerhead charged at her, taking no damage from the staples that hit his head.

_So that's why he calls himself __hammerhead. _Hammerhead then smacked the gun out of silver sable's hands and..punched her in the face. He kicked her in the stomach and

she fell to her knees. _What's wrong with this guy?! I have to stop him. _Peter jumped from the building and fired web pellets at Hammerhead. Silver Sable fell to the ground.

Her face was already bruised. The helicopter fired at Peter and Hammerhead. "What the hell are you doin' here? No wonder they call you a bug, you're a pest." Hammerhead

said. "Someone's a little salty, oh wait that's the usual" Peter said as he was locked into a grapple. Hammerhead grabbed Peter's head and tried to crush it. The helicopter

fired and Peter leaped up and gave Hammerhead an upper cut. Hammerhead fell back and Peter did a barrel roll to avoid incoming bullets. Peter turned and shot webs at the

mini gun attached to the helicopter. The mini gun was unable to rotate because of the webs. Therefore it could no longer fire. While Peter did that, Silver Sable launched

herself at Hammerhead. She threw a punch and Hammerhead smiled. Silver Sable clutched her bleeding fist and Peter turned to stop them. Hammerhead slapped her across

the face and she rolled over the floor, with her hair covering her face. "Do you not know how to treat a lady!? No wonder she left you" Peter said as he fired web pellets at

Hammerhead. Hammerhead put his hands in front of his face to block the incoming webs. Suddenly there was the sound of a buzzing object. Hammerhead and Peter both turned to

look. The sound got louder and louder but Peter couldn't pinpoint it. Peter stopped firing webs at Hammerhead as the sound intensified. _The sound is coming from above. _

Peter turned and leaped as his spider sense went off. An explosion went off underneath Peter. In midair, the ground wasn't visible because of the flames. Everything slowed

down as Peter looked at his attacker. It was a man dressed up with a hood, a wrinkled mask, and pointed ears. The costume was yellow and blue and the man was standing

on a glider. _Impossible...This guy is dressed up as a...goblin. _The glider fired bullets and Peter spun diagonally to dodge them. A bullet went past Peter's shoulder, another

past Peter's stomach, one in between Peter's legs and another past Peter's forearm. When the turn was complete. Peter aimed and fired at the gun attached to the glider. The

man looked down as the gun stopped firing. Then everything sped up. Gravity pulled Peter down so he shot webs at the glider and pulled it with him. "Who are you!?" Peter

screamed. The glider fired rockets but the momentum of Peter's webs pulled it and the shots went off target. Explosions shook the ground and the goblin fell off the

glider as it crashed into the ground. When Peter was on the ground, he waited for the smoke to clear. No spider sense-wait. Peter's spider sense went off and suddenly the

smoke parted. Hammerhead was holding a rocket launcher and he had fired. Peter looked up to see the rocket head for Silver Sable's helicopter. The helicopter turned to

avoid the shot but it was in vain. The rocket hit the tail of the helicopter and it began spinning. Smoke billowed out of the helicopter and it lost altitude, as it continued

spinning. The goblin held his stomach and climbed onto his glider. Hammerhead was already in his car. Hammerhead drove away and the goblin took off to follow. Peter was

about to shoot a web to catch up but he knew he had to stay. The helicopter moved towards the ground and in the direction of a weak Silver Sable. Silver Sable was unable to

move away as the propellers of the helicopter hit the ground, a few feet away from her. The pavement cracked and the helicopter careened in her direction. Silver Sable

closed her eyes, that was all she could manage. Suddenly, something grabbed her waist and she was no longer on the ground. She opened her eyes to see the back of a red

and blue costume. The helicopter's propellers eviscerated the ground where she had been. She turned to see the face of her savior. _Spiderman? _He just looked at her as he let

go of a web and shot one at the pilot in the helicopter. Peter pulled the man out before the helicopter turned over. Peter threw the web so the pilot was dangling from it safely

on the warehouse side. Before Silver Sable and him hit the ground, he shot a web at the warehouse. When they landed, Silver Sable was still bewildered. _Someone saved my _

_life?! All my life, I was told to trust no one. Backstabbers, treachery. There must be a motive to why he did this. _"Why did you save me?" Silver Sable asked in an annoyed

tone. Peter was surprised. "What do you mean?" he replied, scratching his head. Silver Sable shook her head in frustration. "You could have gotten the blueprints but instead

you went back to get me. Why?" she asked, in a low voice. "I don't care for the blueprints. I want to protect the city from the nut job that gets a hold of it. I put the city

before my own needs" Peter said. "I-I...don't understand. What about-all the things you could do. The riches you can ear-" Silver Sable was cut off. "I don't care about those

things; the material things in life. I care about people and events. Really need to stop those two from killing each other" Peter said pointing to the direction Hammerhead

went. Silver Sable nodded and winced as she leaned against the warehouse. Peter retrieved his camera and jumped off a building She remained deep in thought. _I have never _

_met someone so-so selfless. He saves my life and asks for nothing in return?! I think father was wrong about the cruel world, in this case._

Peter shot webs like a madman. _Its 9:50! Need to get Gwen home by 10. I really need to be clutch. _Peter continued to follow the chem-trail left behind by the glider. _That's _

_new but what if it's one of the Osborne's?! It definitely didn't sound like one of them Besides, the costume was yellow and blue instead of the traditional purple and green. _A

few blocks ahead, Hammerheads car was racing from block to block. Above, the goblin followed firing bullets at the car. Peter's improved web shooters allowed him to close

the gap between him and the goblin. Just ahead, a draw bridge was opening up. Hammerhead's car was a few blocks behind. _Don't tell me you're going to try that. _Peter

quickened his pace and the goblin did a 180 degree turn to throw grenades. Peter held his arms in front of his face to block the explosion. His dress shirt was showing from

where the costume had ripped. Peter shot webs blindly because the smoke clouded his vision. Peter missed and he fell to the ground. He rolled and tumbled until he sat

upright. The goblin and hammerhead were blocks ahead, only a block behind the opening draw bridge. _Hammerhead is never going to make it, the bridge is already _

_open. _Peter shot webs at two poles in front of him. He held on and slowly moved backwards. He continued taking steps back until the poles were bending. Peter let go and he

was launched into the air. The wind howled as Peter flew block after block. Hammerhead's car was on the bridge, his driver sped up. Peter was higher than the goblin. Peter

watched as Hammerheads car drove up. The angle of the bridge was too awkward for Hammerhead to pull the stunt. The car went from one side of the bridge and it flew up

for a second but it came down. The car hit the other side of the bridge and fell through the gap between the bridge. There was a cruise ship underneath and Peter watched

carefully. Time slowed again. Hammerhead broke open his glass window and held out an open brief case. The USB that contained the blueprints was inside. Hammerhead

smiled wryly and threw it as far as he could. The goblin screamed in terror and flew in the direction of the briefcase. Peter lost altitude and he fired webs at the goblins face.

_If you can't see the briefcase, how will you __get it? _Now the goblin's screams were muffled and he tried to claw off the webs to no avail. Peter quickly shot a web to both sides

of the bridge and connected them. He shot another web at Hammerhead's falling car and held the three webs. The car jolted and stabilized. Peter tried to connect the webs so

he wouldn't have to hold them. Gravity was pulling him down so it became very difficult. The cruise ship passed underneath the bridge. The goblin took off the webs and

fired rockets at Peter. Peter turned his body to avoid the rockets. One rocket flew over Peter's head and the web snapped. Peter fired many webs at the goblin before firing

another at Hammerhead's car. The goblin fell backwards and held onto his glider. He frowned and flew away. Peter's web connected and he shot another web at the closing

bridge. Peter pulled on the web and brought the car higher. He climbed and climbed and finally brought the car onto the bridge. Hammerhead leaped out of the car and fired

at Peter. Peter jumped up, shot a web at Hammerhead's gun and pulled. The gun flew off the bridge. Peter shot a web at Hammerhead's legs and arms. He then attached

Hammerhead to a light post. Hammerhead's driver took out a knife and swung at Peter. Peter kicked the knife out of the driver's hand. He shot webs and put the driver on a

separate street lamp. _This is what I get for saving them? The yellow goblin got away._ Peter checked his watch 10:07. Peter shot webs and swung back to the dance.


	14. Chapter 14

**Forgive me if this is a little too sherlock holmes. Just a big fan of batman. I hope you enjoy! **

Peter hurried to the dance. _Not leaving Gwen out to dry. Not anymore. Peter Parker is a man of responsibility. I put Gwen before myself._ Peter stopped shooting webs when

he was a couple of blocks away, he rushed into an alleyway. After checking all directions, Peter changed into his dress shirt and pants. Peter ran as he raked his hand through

his hair and tucked his shirt in. Peter adjusted his tie and he stopped running when he arrived. To his dismay, the cafe was empty and so was each table. The lamps set up

illuminated parts of the area but no one was there. Peter walked up to the table where he and Gwen were sitting earlier. He saw two empty seats. Peter looked to the rail and

heard the waves crashing into the rocks below. Peter noticed a figure standing by the rail, looking out at the skyline. The figure was wearing what appeared to be a coat.

Peter's heart sank as a cold breeze blew over him. Peter walked closer to find the figure had long hair, which was flying to the side of his/her face. As Peter approached the

figure, he realized he knew this person. She was wearing red high heels. _You gave Gwen your coat more than half an hour ago. _Peter smirked and realized Gwen waited for

him. He stood and put his hands on the rail beside her. "It's beautiful isn't it?" Peter asked. Gwen turned to see his face and gave him a hug. "How was it? Crime fighting."

Gwen asked, glad to have him back. Peter pulled back from the embrace and said "Good, two down, one got away". _Mr. Yellow goblin remains a mystery. _Gwen saw the

expression on his face and she didn't like it. She touched his face gently with her hand and said "Is that bothering you?". _I don't want her to worry herself. "_No, he just gives

me nightmares_" _Peter said. "The one who got away? Why?" Gwen said. Gwen felt that she needed to play her part in their relationship by aiding Peter through his struggles.

"He-just reminds me of-someone that I had trouble with. It's no problem. Really" Peter replied, trying to reassure himself. Gwen didn't believe that Peter was fine. _He's hiding _

_something but he __just __won't tell me. Why? I want to be there for him and he's just-keeping me out of the loop. _"Peter, i'm not one of those careless girls, the ones that expect

too much. I want to know what happened" Gwen said, determined to get answers. Peter raised his eyebrows then stroked them. "I-don't want you to go through the trouble

of worrying" he confessed. He looked out to sea. "I'll go through so much more trouble if you don't tell me. Peter, I want to know for your sake. You can't keep all of these

things inside. I know you may be used to keeping things to yourself but that's too much stress on one person. If you tell me, who knows, maybe I can help you." Gwen said.

Peter turned away and thought. _She cares about me more than I care about me. She's right. A relationship is like a cake; you share half of it with someone else so as long as _

_i__t's __proportional, everyone is happy. I'll have to explain the Osborne-green goblin thing. _Gwen tried to look at Peter but he was looking the other way. She began to feel a bit

frustrated and abandoned. She pushed her feelings away and opened her mouth to say something. Peter beat her to it. "Gwen" he said and turned. Before she could say

'what?', Peter surprised her with a kiss. Gwen was glad he was the one to initiate the kiss. His lips tasted less like strawberry than earlier but it was still sweet-literally and

figuratively. When they moved away, Peter said "I'll tell you I promise. I'll have to explain a few other things before I can explain why i'm bothered. It's long and your dad is

probabl-" "Six missed calls" Gwen cut him off. "Tell me later" she said, knowing that Peter was being sincere. He took her hand."Lets go home before your dad gives me a

bigger beat down than these thugs" Peter joked. Gwen took one last look at the skyscrapers and the beautiful moonlight before she turned back to Peter. They walked

together and Peter felt that today was not the day to explain. _I'll tell Gwen about Harry some other day. I don't want it to come __between me and her today. Today, is arguably _

_the greatest day of __my life. I will tell her but-I always thought __keeping __dangerous information from people was protecting them...Well Gwen isn't a person. She's an __angel. _

Peter grinned and said "That was a lot of fun Gwen. You never cease to impress me. You're also really good at dancing." "I'm good at dancing?! You could have been on

_Dancing with the stars!" _Gwen said. "But i'm always dancing with the stars. There's this one named Gwen Stacey" Peter replied. Gwen's cheeks turned red and she said

"Peter, do you ever run out of compliments?". "Not when you're around. I need some material, you know. I can't just make up something that doesn't apply" Peter said,

surprised at how comfortable he had become, talking to Gwen. _I have some reaally cheesy compliments._ She buried her head in his chest and he hugged her. They were a

block away from Gwen's house.

In his lab, the goblin took off his suit and wiped at his face. He noticed he was sweating and his cheek was swollen. He had to hunch over because his back was throbbing. He

slowly walked over to his wall. He reached to his lower left hand and found the fake brick. The goblin pushed it inside and the ground beneath him revolved. The wall and the

ground turned 360 degrees. The goblin stepped forward until he was a few feet away from the wall. The wall automatically turned another 360 degrees so instead of a brick

wall, there was a book case. _This is so unoriginal. You would think a billionaire would be able to come up with something fresh. Now how do I explain my injuries? _the goblin

pondered.

Peter had returned from dropping Gwen off. George Stacey was frustrated but glad to see Gwen was okay. As Peter walked, he groaned as he realized something. _I need to _

_see Black Cat. I promised I would show up. Me and my big mouth. _Peter put his costume on once again. He swung past skyscrapers and ran along the rooftop of one of them.

He searched for Black Cat. She had promised to be in the empire state area. Peter gazed up at the empire state building but a voice called from behind. "It's not nice to keep

a woman waiting" Black Cat said. Her arms were crossed and Peter told her he had been busy. "That's not an excuse. Regardless, what do we do now?" black cat asked. "We

have a new guy on the loose. Dresses up like a goblin, he's about this tall" Peter said while raising his hand to indicate the goblin's height. "Why is he an issue?" Black Cat

asked, unimpressed. "The guy has dangerous tech and a dangerous complexion. He wears a mask and he has a glider, grenades, bullets and rockets at his disposal. He wants

into the crime game. Tried to steal blueprints for rhino armor." Peter tried to convince her. "Oh alright. I haven't heard of him but rumor has it that Norman Osborne had

many enemies. Glider, you said? That could be Oscorp's finest. The company can't go to the heir, because well, Osborne and his son are dead." Black Cat offered. "So we start

with Oscorp." Peter deducted. She nodded and they got a move on.

Peter shot a web from a building to the main Oscorp building. Black Cat followed behind. Peter landed on the glass roof and crouched to see the situation. While he looked

through the glass, Black Cat took out a laser and she cut a hole into the glass. Peter turned to see a hole in the glass roof and said "Where did you-never mind". She jumped

through the hole and Peter followed. Black Cat took out a flash light because the moonlight wasn't enough to see. "Since when were you a detective?" Peter asked. "Not a

detective, former criminal" Black Cat said as they turned to look down a hallway. Peter turned on his spidey-light from his waist. A red circle of light illuminated the

environment. There were multiple colors along with the red. Black Cat raised her eyebrows and Peter explained. "The white remnants on the ground are traces of heat

signatures. My light is infrared so the different colors on objects are how much or how little heat there is" "How does that help us?" "We use the heat signature because

human beings give off heat. Wherever there is white, that's where someone has walked" Peter said. Black Cat nodded "So we follow the heat signature and we find the hot

spots for this building. We can find out where anyone and everyone had gone" Peter finished. "And you called me the detective" Black Cat purred. _I need to find where the _

_military items are, then I can find out if anyone stole them. If my infrared light reveals a heat signature on the crates or on any of the weaponry, i'll know someone tampered _

_with __them. _Peter followed a trail to a closet, then to a bathroom and then to an auditorium. They walked down a spiral staircase, through two corridors, into an empty lab,

through another door and down another flight of stairs. Peter continued and the trail shrunk in size. Black Cat was getting frustrated but Peter knew they were close. "Notice

how we see less of a white trail. That means less heat. Less people, less heat. There appears to have been a group of people before. That's why the trail was so wide, the

amount of people was significant, three or four, so was the body heat." Black Cat rolled her eyes. "If there is a small trail, then there is only one person. Why does one person

have business, alone, in this building?" Peter said, grateful for his knowledge. Black Cat barely understood what Peter said, so she sighed and followed the trail with him. They

approached a metal door with a small monitor and a keypad attached to the wall. "Passcode" Black Cat said as she took out a mini USB and plugged it into a port of the

computer. The blank spaces for the password on the screen of the monitor began filling up with randomly assorted letters. In seconds, a combination of of letters was

accepted and the screen said "access granted". _A really unlikely team, but where I lack, she makes up for. Except for the jokes-Black Cat doesn't joke._ Peter heard iron bars

shift and the metal door slid into a space in the ground. A spacious but half occupied room was revealed. The duo walked inside cautiously. The white trail continued all over

the room, it was even in the air. As Peter had predicted, there were military weapons in Oscorp. The room had crates, exo suits, machinery and anything else a sci fi movie

could provide. Black Cat opened a crate and saw missiles. Peter saw a mech suit and a small monitor with it's description. He skimmed over and found that the suit was

capable of healing the user, it had a direct nervous system interface, it could lift 5 tons at a time, it was electronically powered and only a prototype. Peter and Black Cat

determined the storage room was larger than a football field and it held weaponry capable of starting world war three. Peter gestured at the glider and the two walked up to

it. Peter looked at the glider. It was in a glass container, surrounded by a large metal frame. Peter saw a small white patch where the monitor and key pad were. "Someone

used it" Peter said pointing to the white heat trail. Black Cat turned on her flash light and looked at the keyboard. "There are fingerprints, not a very good thief" Black Cat

commented_. But he/she knew the __passcode,Whoever it was __must have been close to __the_ Osborne's. Peter examined it meticulously. _Something is off.__ That glider doesn't look _

_silver, more...marble? _Peter felt there was something fishy but he recalled the white trail in the air. "That glider is a statue. Someone used the passcode, took the glider and

flew off. It was replaced by a marble replica. The heat in the air left white residue and this means the glider must have flew off, creating that heat. "But the ceiling. There's no

sign that someone left." Black Cat argued. "I'm not sure, things aren't the way they appear. Peter leaped up and as the ceiling got closer to his head, Black Cat winced. Peter

went right through the glass ceiling and came down. "Told you. It's fake, the goblin must have broken through and left a hologram to fool the Oscorp employees" The entire

ceiling isn't fake-only par of it. That's what you're saying?" Black Cat asked a nodding Peter. Black Cat threw a piece of wood at the side of the ceiling and it bounced off. "He

cleaned up his mess quite well because the trail ends. His costume must be hiding his heat frequency." Peter concluded. He stepped forwards and tripped over a broken crate.

He bumped into a monitor and his spider strength crushed it. _Whoops._ An alarm sounded off instantly and Black Cat looked around. "We continue tomorrow. Go home" Peter

said. He jumped out of the room and ran.


	15. Chapter 15

Peter arrived home at 11 pm. The lights were off so Peter unlocked the front door and began tip toeing. He was halfway out of the kitchen when the light turned on. Aunt May

was standing by the light switch-arms crossed. "Peter the dance ended an hour ago, where have you been?". She looked at his shirt; part of it was covered in dirt, from the

encounter with the goblin. "Where you doing drugs?!' aunt May asked, with a horrified expression. Peter looked into a mirror. His hair was in disarray and his shirt wasn't tucked

in. _I took off the mask and it ruined my hair, my clothes are dirty-I do look like a drug addict._ "No, aunt May, I walked Gwen home and George Stacey insisted I stay." Peter

lied. "I would never do something like that" Peter said, while hanging his coat. "How was it then?" aunt May asked, still worried. "It was _really good. _Gwen and I have finally,

uh, taken the next step in our friendship". Aunt May was happy for him. He walked upstairs to his room and she said "So those videos payed off? The one's you watched to

learn how to dance?". Peter's cheeks turned red. _I thought I closed the door when I practiced. Guess not. _"You saw nothing" Peter stated. "I won't say anything." Aunt May

said, smiling sneakily. Peter folded and tucked his spiderman suit away. He went to bed and closed his eyes. He thought of Gwen and the dance. He savored his moments with

her and found a getaway from the difficulties in his life. _That's what a relationship should be-something that brings two people together; a bond where the two members are _

_never __alone. _Peter found himself next to a garden. There were butterflies flying, the sun wasn't too bright. The air smelled of flowers. The weather was cool and Peter sat on a

hill. There was a tarp with a food basket next to him. Gwen sat across from him on the hill. She smiled at him with her warm blue eyes. Peter picked out sunflowers, violets

and anything else he could find from the garden. Peter returned and handed them to Gwen. She held them to her chest and hugged them after thanking Peter. When she

looked up, her hair moved to the side and she sniffed the flowers. She made a surprised expression and she raised her eyebrows. The grass tilted back and forth with the

wind, but the weather never grew cold. Peter admired Gwen. _All those flowers and she still puts them to shame with her smile. _The clear skies turned grey and Peter heard a

buzzing sound. He turned but he saw nothing. The sound was loud and seemed to be approaching. Peter turned back around to see Gwen was being hauled away by a man on

a glider. It was the goblin. Peter shot webs and ran-he did anything to catch up. It was to no avail. The scene changed and the goblin was on a sky scraper. The goblin

jumped off his glider and fired something at Peter. He dropped Gwen onto the roof. Peter struggled to move. He was paralyzed. The goblin picked up a tearing Gwen. He

walked to the edge of the roof with a kicking and screaming Gwen. Peter willed himself to move but he was sweating with concentration. The goblin turned and smiled

wickedly. He dropped Gwen and she screamed. Someway some how, the paralysis wore off and Peter leaped over the goblin. He shot webs on the building and pulled himself

down to gain altitude. The wind slapped his face and Gwen's hair flew wildly as she was already halfway down. Peter shot more webs and launched himself until the speed of

the wind was deafening. No matter how much effort Peter put, Gwen was still just as far away as she had been when the goblin dropped her. Gwen was 10 stories from hitting

the ground. Peter was about 50 stories up and he knew there was _nothing _he could do. Gwen was falling quick. Peter watched with horror as she went from 5 stories to the

pavement. Her body crashed into the ground and Peter's eyes widened.

Peter gasped as his eyes opened. He was sweating and he sat up, out of breath. He was in his bedroom, the lights were off and it was still dark outside. _It was a dream. _

_Thank goodness Gwen is alright._ Peter sighed painfully.I_ can't imagine losing her. _Peter shook his head and pinched himself to make sure he wasn't going insane. _I can't let _

_anyone find who __spiderman is. They'll know where to hurt me. _Peter thought about this for what seemed like eternity. _Am I endangering Gwen by telling her i'm spiderman?! I _

_don't know. She __cares, she wants to know about everything that bothers me. If I keep thinking to my self, i'm going to end up in a mental institute. _After some more frantic

thinking, Peter resolved his issue. _I have to stay faithful to Gwen and my promises. I'll tell her about everything tomorrow. _Peter forced his eyes shut and willed himself to

sleep.

Peter woke up feeling as if he never slept. Peter frowned as he realized he had to go to school. The morning passed in a blur. Peter could barely comprehend what was going

on. When he got to school, Peter saw Gwen and she smiled and then she frowned. Peter could barely maintain eye contact. "Peter, you look like you haven't slept in a week"

Gwen commented. She was trying to get a good look at him but he could barely keep his head up. The teacher walked into the classroom and Peter said "I need to talk to

you. I'll save it for lunch." Gwen nodded and they both sat down. The day dragged on and lunch finally came. Peter collapsed into his seat at the lunch table. Gwen came and

sat down a few seconds later. "Okay, this is going to sound ridiculous but I've been losing sleep over it." Peter whispered. "I've noticed. Go on" Gwen said. "Harry and Norman

Osborne were. They were the-green..goblins" Peter said. He waited for Gwen to respond but she looked at him as if he had a third eye. "Your nemesis was your best friend?

Does that mean-you..." Gwen paused. "No, Norman Osborne tried to kill me. He took this serum and it manipulated his hormones, changed the way he thought and it

changed his physique." Peter said eyeing Gwen. She raised her eyebrows and nodded. Then her face lit up "The green!" she exclaimed. Peter nodded and continued. "He killed

himself in the process, Harry blames it on me. He starts taking it and he isn't thinking straight anymore. He and I fight and I finally talk to him about it." Peter said and

he looked down. "But-then what?" Gwen asked. "My old nemesis, an alien, must have reproduced, duplicated itself or something, and it is a parasite. It found a host and-.

killed Harry." Peter said with a grim expression. Gwen put her hand over her mouth. "Was this when you stayed away from everyone. When you walked home alone and".

Peter nodded. "I tried my best to save him but I was out-manned. I had help from an old enemy but it wasn't enough. That was bad but now there is a new goblin, unlike the

old one(s)". "Was this the guy who tried to steal the rhino armor and got away?" Gwen asked, as she pieced together what Peter said. "Yes and I don't want to find out that

my best friend or his father are alive and they faked their deaths." Peter confessed. "You should have told me before! Wait, how was this goblin different?" Gwen asked. "He's

clumsy, I think he's new to the glider and he doesn't wear purple and green like the old goblin. He wears yellow and blue. His tone is also different and he wears a different

mask. Whether he is one of the Osborne's or not, he has his hands on dangerous tech from Oscorp. He snuck in and stole machinery, a glider and lord knows what else." Peter

felt as if he wasn't as tense. Gwen looked him in the eyes and said "It's not your fault, what happened to the Osbornes. I'm sure you did your best. If your description is

accurate, then I would believe that this is truly a new Goblin. Was that all?" Gwen asked. "No, I had a dream-nightmare actually. You and I were sitting on a hill having a

picnic", Peter stopped. "That's a nightmare?!" Gwen teased but stopped smiling when she saw Peter frown. "Go on" she whispered. "The goblin abducted you and I chased

you-without my costume. He paralyzed me and I couldn't do anything as he threw you off a skyscraper. I broke free of the paralysis and jumped after you, but it was too

late" Peter said, glumly. Gwen cupped his hands with her own. "Peter, I know you will be careful. I'll stay away whenever there is trouble and I won't-ever tell anyone your

identity." Gwen whispered. "I-just..don't want to ever lose you. I'm not sure I can cope with a loss so devastating." Peter shook his head. "I'll always be with you and I don't

want you to blame yourself if-if something were to happen." Gwen said while stroking his hand. "Maybe-m..never mind" Peter frowned. Gwen's heart stopped. "Maybe what?!"

Gwen asked. "I hate to say this. I really, _really_ do. Maybe, we shouldn't be a couple. I-feel strange. I can't ever see you in danger without feeling as if I concussed myself"

Peter said. Gwen was hurt but she tried to see things from Peter's point of view. "I won't let myself become endangered, promise. Maybe we should limit _some _of our

time together, but I love you and I want us to be together. _Don't you?" _Gwen asked. "_Of course. _I'm so sorry. I just-doubt things. This goblin guy is getting me paranoid."

Peter said. "Forget about him _while you're in school at least._ I'm sure it's hard to find the balance between your'e two lives but i'm here for you." Gwen said. Peter sighed and

smiled "Thanks Gwen, i'm glad I told you". Peter was slightly more relaxed but he couldn't keep his mind off of his dream.

Mary Jane sat next to Peter in his art class. They would talk each day about current events and anything that came up. Peter looked down at his work and then at Mary Jane.

"Do you ever plan on chasing a career in art?" Peter asked. "No, I can barely draw a straight line. I don't know what career I want" Mary Jane laughed. They talked about

Peter's work at the daily Bugle and then about their aunts. "My aunt makes the most fattening cookies" Mary Jane complained. "If you eat them as much as talk about them,

I don't see any negative affect on you" Peter said, careful not to flirt. Mary Jane laughed. Peter finished his custom pattern and colored it in shades of red orange and yellow.

The period always went by quick while talking to Mary Jane. For once, Peter forgot about his dream. This was a big mistake.

The weeks went by, Peter fought alongside Black Cat. They prevented crime and for once, there was a day of no recorded crime. Life was good but Peter could not find

any leads to the Goblin. Peter didn't understand, he researched all the Oscorp employees and none of them were in the Oscorp building the day the glider was stolen. Oscorp

never found out who triggered the alarm but they did realize some weaponry was stolen. All the leads Peter found were dead ends. _The goblin may not have been an oscorp _

_employee but why steal the tech? _Peter would argue with himself for hours, only to resolve nothing. Mary Jane and Mark announced they were going to take a tour of the

Museum of Natural History and they asked Peter and Gwen to join them. Peter was going to agree, but they wouldn't be back home until later on in the evening. This would

interfere with Peter and Black Cat's crime fighting spree so he objected. There was a new exhibit worth 2.5 million dollars being placed into the museum. It was a sculpture of

the leaning tower of wanted to go but he knew he shouldn't.

The day of the trip arrived quickly. Peter decided he wouldn't endanger Gwen by taking her to a public event. Black Cat did her homework; mob

bosses would almost definitely seek interest in the sculpture. Peter and her agreed to watch the museum on the day of it's new inductee. Peter was in costume, swinging through

the city. He ran along a steel wall and jumped through the iron bars of a construction building. Peter arrived on a rooftop. Black Cat was looking at a nonexistent watch

and shaking her head. "Lets go. We'll stay on the roof to listen. There aren't any glass windows so that's the best we can do." Peter stated. Black Cat nodded and asked "How

come I don't get to make the game plan?". Peter shrugged his shoulders "You need to be an expert vigilante for that" Peter said. They ran in harmony, Peter jumped off the

building with Black Cat by his side. He held her hand and pulled her up to the ledge of a sky scraper. Peter shot a web and they swung to the museum.

"C'mon. It's been over an hour. My coffee is cold and I am too" Black Cat complained. She sat cross legged on the roof of the museum. Peter sat with her and he had his

mask up halfway so he could finish his bagel. "No, we can't leave yet, anything can happen. Besides you brought the museum to my attention". Peter said, munching on his

bagel. Black Cat sighed "I don't like waiting". "Speaking of waiting; when did you say you were going to get married?" Peter asked. He dabbed his mouth with a napkin and

Black Cat responded "In two weeks, I can hardly wait. His relatives from Norway are going to be there, he reserved a hall in this beautiful banquet". "That's great. What did

you say the lucky man was called?" Peter asked, spider senses blaring. "Roderick K-" she was cut off by the sound of a grenade hitting the roof. Peter shot a web at her and

pulled her out of the grenades radius. She couldn't get her whip and it was left to face the wrath of the grenade. The explosion destroyed part of the roof and Black Cat

tumbled to the side (thanks to Peter's web). Peter turned to the familiar humming of a glider. There was the sinister laugh of the goblin and Peter turned to see the masked

villain. Black Cat got up and rubbed her shoulder. The hood, the wrinkled mask, the blue and yellow costume; the goblin was here. "Who are you?!" Peter asked the goblin on

the glider. "My name is, Hobgoblin!". The Hobgoblin began laughing and the glider fired.


	16. Chapter 16

Mark pushed Mary Jane out of the way. Rubble and debris crashed into the ground where she had been standing. He dusted off his clothes and helped Mary

Jane up. People were scattered and they ran but Mark looked up through the hole in the ceiling. He saw a man on a flying-glider shooting at spiderman.

There was a woman in a black jumpsuit that Mark had never seen before. She appeared to be on spiderman's side. "Lets get out of here", Mary Jane said, worriedly. She pulled

on his wrist and he ran with her. Everyone deserted the sculpture and people crowded the exits. On the roof, there was an explosion and the building shook. Peter knew he

couldn't dodge missiles much longer. "Okay, Mr. Hobgoblin, can you tell me why you're here?" Peter asked as he leaped to avoid incoming bullets. "I'm here for the sculpture,

better yet, why are you here?" Hobgoblin asked as he turned his attention to Black Cat. Black Cat ran and the bullets flew past her "We need to get off the roof!" she said.

Peter almost fell through a hole in the roof multiple times so he shouted in agreement. Hobgoblin fired a missile and Peter shot a web at the end of the missile. Peter spun

and launched the missile at Hobgoblin. The glider moved just in time but the building behind the museum lost a wall. Hobgoblin frowned as Peter and Black Cat had already

left the roof. People were all over the streets, trying to get away. Hobgoblin fired bullets but nothing happened. He looked down to see webbing along his glider. Then

Hobgoblin was kicked from behind. He fell off the gilder and Peter held onto his shoulders. Hobgoblin took out a knife and swung in midair. Peter moved back and kicked his

stomach. Hobgoblin threw multiple blades at Peter and the glider flew under his legs. Mark watched as spiderman evaded multiple knives and then one blade cut Spiderman's

wrist area. Peter fell to the ground and moaned as he looked to his wound. Hobgoblin held out a grenade and he raised his hand to throw it. Black Cat jumped up from a fire

escape onto the head of Hobgoblin. She threw him off the glider but he dropped the grenade. Peter watched the grenade fall and shot webbing around the grenade. Peter

prayed as the web covered grenade fell to the ground. Mark and Mary Jane ran and Mark looked back. The grenade blew up but the radius was limited. No one was in the are

and webbing flew all over the place. Peter got up to see Black Cat being kneed in the stomach. She collapsed to her hands and knees but punched Hobgoblin in the stomach.

Hobgoblin sidestepped because he ordered his glider to return. Black Cat was unaware of the glider coming from behind, knives ready. Peter shot a web at her legs and

pulled. Black Cat's face hit the ground but the glider missed and crashed into the wall. Black Cat was frustrated but thankful. Peter punched Hobgoblin in the face while the

glider was stuck in the wall. Peter drop kicked Hobgoblin and sent him flying. Hobgoblin crashed into a fire hydrant and destroyed it. Water sprayed and the Hobgoblin was in

sitting position against a wall. Black Cat got up and watched the Hobgoblin fumble with something. _Please do something, I need it to do something. _The Hobgoblin took out a

pad with buttons on it and he pressed the red circular button. Nothing happened and Peter walked up to the goblin. "Game over" Peter said. The Hobgoblin shook his head in

disbelief. He pressed another button and the glider came out of the wall and crashed into Black Cat. She sprawled and tumbled into the middle of the road. Peter turned to

her but someone began screaming and running. There was a man running towards Peter and the Hobgoblin. The weird part-he was on fire. The man screamed "Not again! I

stopped, I changed! Have mercy!". Peter recognized this man as he got closer. It was molten man-aka Mark Allan. _The goblin must have initiated the transformation. _

_Mark __doesn't control it. __Whenever the Hobgoblin wants, Mark becomes molten man. _Hobgoblin smashed the back of Peter's head with a brick. Peter was dazed but he turned

to see Hobgoblin. Black Cat ran to aid Peter but Hobgoblin choked Peter and jumped onto his glider. He flew off and Peter tried to punch and kick. Hobgoblin let go of

Peter and stopped flying. The sudden stop caused Peter to fly into a glass wall. Peter fell to the ground and his spider sense went off. Grenades crashed into the ground. Peter

shot a web and pulled in the opposite direction of the grenades. They blew up as Peter pulled his web. Peter's body flew like a ragdoll. He fell onto the pavement and rolled.

Peter could barely look up to see the Hobgoblin in front of him. Black Cat ran in the direction the goblin went. Behind her, a man on fire threw balls of lava. She had been

running for a quarter of a mile and the man wouldn't stop accusing her and spiderman of doing something to him. She saw Hobgoblin in front of spiderman's body on the

ground. Spiderman's costume was ripped, he was bruised and bleeding from his wrist. Black Cat felt tears coming but she pushed them back. _Have to teach this jerk a lesson. _

Black Cat jumped in the air and the goblin turned. He anticipated this and he kicked her in the jaw. She fell to the ground and her hair covered her face. Peter remembered

his vow to protect his loved ones. He got up and gave Hobgoblin an uppercut, a slap in the face and then a kick on the back of his head. Hobgoblin fell off the gilder. Peter

shot multiple webs at the glider and pinned the glider down. Peter picked up Black Cat and asked her if she was okay. She struggled to stand but she nodded. "Give me the

controls" Peter demanded. "What makes you think i'll do that?" Hobgoblin sneered as he crawled away from Peter. Peter held him up and raised his fist. "You endanger

people's lives, I may have to endanger yours if you don't tell me." _My hero, _Black Cat thought. Hobgoblin frowned. He was out of tricks. Hobgoblin reached for the control

pad after seeing the glider pinned to the ground. Suddenly a ball of fire hit Peter. Hobgoblin stood up and ordered his glider to return. The glider fought against the webs.

Black Cat ran towards Peter but Hobgoblin drew a knife. Hobgoblin shook his head and laughed maniacally. Molten man approached and Peter used a wall for support. "Mark!

I didn't do anything to you!" Peter yelled. "You're the one who caused this" Mark scoffed as he pointed towards his flame covered body. "Every time I see you, suddenly I turn

into-this freak." Mark said. Peter shook his head "Mark no, have you ever considered someone is using you to fight me?! Someone has a remote control control and that

someone can activate and deactivate your molten skin." Peter said calmly. Hobgoblin watched the glider entangle some of the webs ad continue to gain inches of

altitude. _Keep it up boy, then I can escape, _Hobgoblin thought. "Mark! He has the controls!" Peter yelled pointing at Hobgoblin. Black Cat saw the Goblin focused on Peter so

she kicked him in the stomach. The goblin dropped the control pad and everyone dove for it. A girl called out "Mark, it's me, come back! IT'S OK" the girl yelled. Mark turned

and the goblin took the controls. Peter shot a web and pulled it out of the Hobgoblin's hands. Peter pressed a button on the control pad. It was a blue button and it was the

only one that wasn't labeled. To Mark's surprise, he regained his normal skin. The goblin shrieked in terror and Peter said "See, he had it the entire time!". The glider flew out

from the webs and under the legs of the goblin. The goblin flew and picked up Mary Jane. Mark yelled and the goblin fired a missile. Peter shot a web and pulled Mark out of

the way. When the smoke cleared, the goblin was gone. "Change me back, I need to save her!" Mark yelled. "We can save her, stay here" Black Cat said. "You don't

understand!" Mark yelled. "Your'e wasting time! Mark leave it we can save her" Peter said as he grabbed Black Cat and shot a web. Peter told Mark to wait and he handed

Black Cat the controls. He held her by the waist and he swung from his web. _How dare he. How dare he walk away from me. I need to help her, Mark thought _"I like the way

you're holding me" Black Cat purred. Peter realized he was holding her by the waist she had her arms wrapped around his neck. He blushed and Black Cat noticed because

his mask was tearing apart. _I need to save Mary Jane at all costs. _Something was tugging at the back of Peter's mind but he couldn't think properly. Mark took a cab and told

the cabby he would pay double if the man followed a goblin on a glider. The cabby agreed and Mark was on his way. Peter located the goblin and swung faster. Black Cat still

wondered who was behind spiderman's mask. Peter told Black Cat to hold on as he used street lamps as a catapult. He shot two street lamps and pulled as far back as he

could before launching himself in the air. Black Cat held on tight as they gained speed and altitude. Peter fired web pellets at the goblin. Hobgoblin lost balance and dropped

Mary Jane to regain balance. Peter turned and shot a web at Mary Jane and held on. They were all many stories up, near the roof of a sky scraper. Mark took the elevator of a

building to get to the 112th floor. Black Cat held on for dear life as Peter's entire body turned. Peter shot a web at the roof of a nearby skyscraper. Black Cat slipped and

Peter grabbed her hand. They fell because Peter let go of the web on the building. Peter used his spider abilities to stick onto the building with his back and his legs. Black

Cat's heart was pounding and Mary Jane was a few stories below. Both of Peter's hands were occupied; his right hand held Black Cat and his left hand held a web holding

Mary Jane. Mark looked through a window and yelled from across the street. "Mary Jane!". She sobbed in response. _I can't let go of either of them. _Peter watched with horror

as Hobgoblin fired a grenade at Peter. Peter jumped off the wall. The wall blew up and Mary Jane's heart pounded as they fell. Peter let go of Black Cat for a second and she

felt betrayed. _He's going to let me die?! To save someone else?! _Black Cat thought. Peter shot a web at her in midair. He held onto both webs and combined them so he could

have a free hand to shoot webs. Mark yelled and Black Cat felt some relief. Peter attached the middle of the web to a flag post. Black Cat and Mary Jane were attached to the

same web and the flag post held their weights. Hobgoblin threw grenades at a falling Peter. Peter dodged and shot web pellets. The goblin dodged and Peter made a web

blanket. The webbing hit the goblin and he was tangled. Peter shot a web at a building and grabbed onto the goblin. He threw the goblin onto the roof. Meanwhile, the web

on the pole shifted towards one side as Mary Jane turned. She tried to get a good look at where she was. Black Cat was afraid that the web would fall apart or the goblin

would kill them. When Mary Jane turned back, the weight shifted and the entire web was pulled on her side. Black Cat was pulled up and over the flag pole. She grabbed onto

the pole and held. The web continued to hold Mary Jane a few stories below. Black Cat knew she couldn't hold forever but she willed herself to hold. The goblin zapped Peter

with lazers and Peter responded with webs. Peter launched himself at the goblin and punched him in the face. _Need to get back to them._ Peter jumped off the building after

he shot a web at the goblin. Peter returned to the building. Black Cat couldn't hold on any longer. She let go and Peter grabbed her. The web was still attached so Mary Jane

was a few stories down. Peter lowered them as he lost altitude slowly. He was climbing down the building. Suddenly, Hobgoblin threw a knife and cut the web. Mary Jane's

part of the web fell. Peter let go of the web and held onto Black Cat. He dove down. The Hobgoblin flew with him and fired rockets. Peter evaded them and shot a web at the

glider. The web missed and Peter tried multiple times. Peter finally webbed onto the glider after avoiding a rocket. Peter told Black Cat to hold on as he spun and launched

the glider into a nearby building. Mary Jane was thirty stories from hitting the ground. Peter shot webs at buildings and pulled himself down. He was a story away from

reaching a screaming Mary Jane. Peter launched himself with webs again. This time he was a few feet away from her. Peter reached out to grab Mary Jane. Hobgoblin flew

from behind and kicked Peter in the stomach. Peter touched finger tips with Mary Jane and tried to grab her hand but he missed by a hairs length. Peter was kicked to the

side and Black Cat barely held on. Peter shot a web at the goblin's face and the goblin stopped flying. They were ten stories from hitting the ground. Mary Jane was less.

Peter shot a web at her stomach and another web at the wall of a building. The web stretched as far as it could and bobbed up. Black Cat slipped because of the momentum

and held onto Peter's leg. Peter looked down as the screaming had stopped. Mary Jane's head was leaning back, so were her legs. Peter's heart stopped. _No, please. _Peter

lowered Black Cat onto the ground. The goblin watched from above and flew away. When Peter and Black Cat reached the ground, they walked up to Mary Jane. She hadn't

said a word and her body was still dangling like a puppet. Peter wanted to call out to her but he couldn't make a sound. They approached the red haired girl, fearing the

worst. Her eyes were closed. Peter looked with disbelief. Peter felt like he was choking. "Ma-ry Jane" he called. No answer. They stopped walking when they were directly in

front of her. Black Cat held his hand and Peter felt a cold breeze blow over him. Peter took off the web and let go of Black Cat's hand. He held Mary Jane in his lap. He wiped

the hair away from her face. Peter still couldn't believe it. _My dream. It wasn't Gwen who would fall to her death. It was Mary Jane. _Peter sobbed and heard police

sirens. Black Cat hugged him. Peter didn't hug back. Black Cat didn't know how to comfort him. "You did your best. At the end of the day. You are still a hero. All the people

from the museum, me, you saved us." Black Cat reassured. Peter didn't respond as he set Mary Jane's body on the ground. _Why can't I make you feel better?! s_he

thought. _The impact from the fall and then my web. I shot a web to break her fall but the momentum must have caused a whiplash. It snapped her neck. How could I be so _

_stupid?! _The cops approached with their caps off their heads. Peter took one last look at Mary Jane before her body was taken away. Mark was rushing through a crowd of

people but the slow elevator had put him at a disadvantage. Peter hugged Black Cat and whispered "I'm sorry". He shot webs and landed on the roof of a small building.

"We'll meet tomorrow, same place." Peter said. "There is no way you could have saved her" Black Cat whispered. Peter nodded and she kissed his exposed cheek before

leaving. _After everything, after giving my best attempts, I realize now that people will die. There is nothing I can do to prevent it sometimes. I need to work on preventing _

_situations like these from ever happening again. People just keep leaving. Norman Osborne, Harry Osborne-and now Mary Jane. The goblin is still out there. Spiderman won't _

_stop now. Spiderman won't stop ever._

**Thanks for reading. The next few chapters will be the last few. They may take more time than usual. I hope you enjoyed!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Thank you guys so much for the support. Thanks for being patient. I would also like to address Dafishindasea. I personally didn't like Mary Jane-ever. I didn't like her in the shows, the movies nada. I think Gwen and Peter are made for each other. Will Gwen live?! I can't guarantee anything but I believe a fan fiction is meant to be in the perspective of the fans. I hope you enjoy! **

Mark rushed through the crowd but everyone kept walking away. _What happened, why is everyone leaving?! Where is Mary Jane?! _Mark could not think

straight. Mark felt paranoid as he pushed through the crowd and saw nothing. An ambulance drove away but there was nothing in the center of the crowd.

Mark was confused and annoyed but he put two and two together. _She can't be. No way, Spiderman saved her-he must have. He's...a hero. _Mark tried to

convince himself. He walked up to one of the police officers and asked "What happened?!". The officer was holding his cap and he shook his head. "A woman

fell from about 60 or 70 stories. Spiderman tried to save her...but it was over." the cop said. Marks heart raced "Who was the woman?! Describe her, name-

anything!". "She had red hair, young girl, wearing blue jeans and a off white coat, something like that" the cop said. Mark couldn't believe it, he thanked the officer and

walked off. _That's exactly what Mary Jane looks like. She...died. All because Spiderman didn't let me help. All because spiderman kept the controls for my molten skin. That_

_selfish __worm of a man. Wanted all the glory to himself. He let her die, he's not a hero, he's a fruad. _Mark couldn't control the mix of desolation confusion and anger he felt. _It _

_can't __happen. We were in the museum. In a year I may have even proposed to her. How can something happen so-so fast?!_ Mark felt like he was falling apart. Mark didn't

realize Peter was dealing with internal battles of his own. Peter arrived home and decided he was going to call Gwen. Aunt May opened the door and her eyes were red from

crying. She hugged him before he could utter a word. She held him tight and squeezed his arms. She brought him to the kitchen and she said "I saw the news". Peter was

expressionless. "Whoever Spiderman is, he is going to lose a lot of support. This is the first time a person fell from a skyscraper since Spiderman entered the picture. Peter-

promise me you won't do dangerous things. I can't lose you too" Aunt May said as she dabbed her eye with a tissue. _Get it together Peter. Life is hard, no one said it would _

_be __easy. I need to __ensure my loved ones are secure. If spiderman falls apart, New York wouldn't exist any more._ "I promise i'll be safe" Peter reassured, confident that he

would make a bigger effort to deduce crime and stop it before it was in motion. "I invited Gwen and your friend Mark, I thought you might want to talk to them. They both

agreed to come. You have half an hour Peter" Aunt May said as Peter munched on his food. _Great, I have to see Mark. _Peter waited for their arrival and he was deep on

thought. He continued to play out the events of the day inside his head. He conjured up solutions to the mistakes he made. Instead of attaching Black Cat and Mary Jane to a

web on a flag post, he could have broken a window of the skyscraper and placed Gwen and Black Cat out of harms way. _It was too quick to prepare for. I can either waste my _

_life with __regret or I can stop this from recurring. _The bell rang and Peter left his room to answer. It was Gwen. She brought cake for Peter and Aunt May. Peter took the cake

and placed it on the table and then he faced Gwen. _If she died...I would die inside. _Gwen looked pretty but she didn't wear anything fancy, there was no reason to. She took

his hand and they sat down. "I don't know what you must be feeling, I want to help" Gwen whispered. Peter was startled. "Gwen, i'm not blaming myself, I promise" Peter

said. "It's just, this goblin guy is very resourceful and he had the controls to Mark's molten skin. Way too many distractions for me to think straight. Mark might be in a tough

position, I have to be careful" Peter said in a low voice. Gwen nodded and she said "Your dream. Its so weird-the way fate works." Gwen said glumly. Peter sighed and the

bell rang. Peter opened the door to see Mark. He looked as if he dipped his face in hot water, it was all red. "I'm sorry." Peter said while putting his hand on Mark's shoulder.

"Don't be. It's not your fault-it's spiderman's fault." Mark said. Gwen gave Peter a look and Peter offered Mark a seat. Aunt May came from her room and said hello to the

guests. She placed food on the table and the aroma filled Peter's nostrils. _I love the fact that Aunt May cooks like she's on Hell's kitchen. _Peter held out his fork and knife and

he was prepared to eat but Aunt May wagged her finger. "Roll up your sleeves first" she said. Peter did as he was told. His mind was warning him of something but Peter

ignored it. A cut was revealed as Peter rolled up his sleeve. It went from one side of Peter's wrist to the other. Mark's eyes widened as he remembered something. _That goblin _

_man threw knives at spiderman. Spiderman __had a cut on his wrist, in the same spot. Peter's cut looks fresh. How come? _Mark pondered, clearly troubled. Gwen watched in an

attempt to scope out the situation. "Uh, Peter, wh-how did you get that cut?" Mark asked, in hopes of confirming his beliefs. "Oh, this, I-cut myself while riding my bike"

Peter lied. Aunt May chimed in "Peter? You don't have a bike". Peter hated himself for coming up with the worst excuse possible. _"_I borrowed one from NYC's citi bike

campaign. Thought it might be fun" Peter said, trying to cover up his previous lie. Gwen mouthed "What" and Peter said "The food is really good", this time being honest.

Mark got up and said "I have to go, I remembered something. Liz is probably really worried. Thanks for having me" Mark blurted. Peter felt his mind race. _He knows i'm _

_spiderman, he has seen me abandon Liz and use the Bugle excuse. He must have seen my cut as Spiderman and he put two and two together. So much for being a detective. _

_He knows who I love. What did I get myself into?! _Peter continued to scold himself. Aunt May couldn't get Mark to stay, so he left and everyone wished him goodbye. Aunt

May went to her room upstairs and Gwen said "There's something up with him". "He knows who I am. Both of me" Peter whispered nervously. Gwen made a confused

expression and then a worried expression. "Stay away from him. No matter what. He can hurt me, he can hurt you, His mind is way too occupied" Peter warned in a low

tone. Gwen nodded. They ate in silence and Peter realized he had forgotten about the goblin. I need to do more detective work to find out who he is. Peter went to his room

and got a rose from his room. He had bought it a few days ago for her, but they promised not to see each other because of Peter's dream. She smiled at him and she put the

rose next to her nose. She sniffed it with her eyes closed and her smile grew. Peter began too feel loose. Seeing her pleased satisfied Peter and he would never ask for

anything more. Then Peter remembered the villains that were capable of taking the girl of is dreams away. They talked about school and soon Gwen had to leave. He kissed

her goodbye and held her hand tight "Be careful", he whispered in her ear. When Peter went to bed, he knew he couldn't sleep. He needed to find out about the goblin and he

needed to find out what Mark Allan was up to. There would be too much bothering Peter for him to fall asleep. Peter wished aunt May a goodnight and he went to his room.

He switched into his torn spiderman costume after examining it closely. _This costume-everything about it is symbolism. The man who fell four times but got up five. The _

_hero who not only offered hope __but an example. A hero was anyone willing to take risks in favor of someone else. Sacrifices were all a part of this._ Peter felt a chorus go on

inside his head. Something serious was going to go down. Peter could feel it it in his bones. Peter shut off the lights. He stuffed pillows under his bed and he crawled out the

window. He closed it behind him.

**I'm sorry it's short. I really didn't want to take another day doing this. Had a lot going on but I promise i'm going back to the every-other-day posting ****schedule. Happy valentines day and stay awesome! -Robin**


	18. Chapter 18

It was midnight as Peter swung through the city. New Yorkers were still outside. The bright lights of times square could not distract Peter. Peter searched for

clues of the glider's trail. He brought along tools from his photography class. They were to assist him to see what the naked eye couldn't. Peter covered four

blocks and found nothing. Peter's tools made a lens that he was able to look through. Peter climbed onto the tallest skyscraper in the area. He looked around

and saw nothing. Peter moved from the east to the west of the city. He searched again and found remnants of a chem-trail. Peter followed the trail.

Black Cat had arrived home an hour ago. Her fiance was not home. _He's always busy with something. Business men these days. _Black Cat sighed and took walked into the

bathroom. She had already taken off her black jumpsuit and changed. She looked into the mirror and looked at her ruined make up. She washed it off and showered. While

she was in the shower, she heard a crash and a thud. _What in the world?_ Black Cat finished up and quickly put on her clothes. She heard movement in the house and then a

thud. She called out "Roderick?". There was no response. Black Cat took initiative and walked out of the bathroom stealthily. She tried to pinpoint where she had heard the

sounds. It appeared to be coming from the library. She walked carefully and to her surprise a man was lying on the floor. He had his hand up in an effort to reach one of the

books maybe. The strange part was-he was the hobgoblin. Black Cat was stunned but she recovered and walked towards the body. The hobgoblin was breathing but he was

unconscious. Black Cat brought her hand to the mask and pulled it up. It was rather difficult because the man was limp. As she was taking off the mask, she heard something

move outside. Seconds later, spiderman entered through the window and landed. Spiderman had his arms positioned to fire webs but he lowered them when he saw black

cat. He looked to the goblin and then at her and said "Black Cat, what happened?". Black Cat was surprised that spiderman knew who she was but then she remembered. _I _

_took off my mask __for __him, __of course he knows it's me. _"He crashed into the building and he was hurt. He's unconscious so i'm finding out who he is" Black Cat said. Peter

nodded and she lifted up the mask. There was a gasp but it didn't come from Peter. Black Cat covered her mouth with her hands when she saw the man behind the mask.

Peter was also surprised. It was the man who had offered to pay 500 million for the rhino armor. It made sense that he was the hobgoblin because during the second auction,

this man didn't show up. Hobgoblin showed up later that night to steal the rhino armor. Peter couldn't understand why Black Cat was so shocked. "Do you recognize him?"

Peter asked curiously. Black Cat appeared to be holding back a sob. "What happened? Are you alright" Peter asked. Black Cat had a tear roll down her cheek. Peter hated

seeing her like this. He walked up to her and held her hand. "Black Cat, i'm here, it's okay. But do you know who this is?" Peter asked with tho softest voice he could muster.

"He-he's my.. he's my fi-ance" she croaked. Peter felt horrible for her. He brought her head to his chest and she sobbed for what seemed like forever. When she stopped,

Peter wiped her tears from her face and he looked around. _The glider is in the middle of the hallway. That indicates that the goblin came from the right. Further down the _

_same hallway, there is a broken __window. That's where he entered. The way the window and the glider, the hallway, everything seemed intentional. But why would he come _

_here if he knew his fiance would find his identity? _Peter looked to the hand Hobgoblin had on the bookshelf. _He was reaching for something but he looks like he collapsed _

_before he got it._ Peter looked to the book above hobgoblin's hand. It was Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. _Ironic, if you liked romance so much you wouldn't have _

_done this to your fiance. No more joking, time to act. _Peter let go of Black Cat's hand and she looked surprise. He ignored her for a second and he tried to pull the book out of

the shelf. The book came out halfway and Peter was able to pull it diagonally but it wouldn't leave the bookcase. Being careful not to use his spider strength Peter tugged

gently. Suddenly, the ground beneath the three of them rotated. Black Cat was surprised yet again. Peter shook his head. _That has got to be the most cliche spot to hide a _

_lab. _Peter walked around the lab and saw a chamber. There was a plaque and it was labeled with the details of the chamber. The chamber was not to big, it was the size of a

closet. Peter read the details and noted inhuman strength, quicker reaction time, regenerative abilities and multiple side effects. There was a gas that was released into the

chamber when a human stood inside. The gas would be inhaled and it would seep into the pores of the subject. All the effects lasted 8 hours. Peter looked at hobgoblin and

then at Black Cat. "I'm sorry it had to be this way" Peter said glumly. _Her wedding was less than a week away and this guy, this criminal ruined everything. He tried to kill _

_me, he killed Mary Jane and he could have killed his own fiance._ Peter felt rage build up inside him but he took slow breaths to calm himself down. Black Cat said "I should

have seen it coming-I really am bad luck. Just a _black cat"_ she said, feeling devastated. Peter wiped her hair away from her teary face and said "You aren't bad luck. If

anything-you're good luck. All you've done was help me. We rounded up more criminals than I could ever imagine. It's just, sometimes, things are meant to be. Bad things

happen to further us as people. But no matter who leaves your side, I will always be there" Peter said. Black Cat loved him for saying that and she leaned in for a kiss.

Instead, Peter gave her a hug. She was a little disappointed but glad she could have one reliable person in her life. Peter rounded up all the weapons hobgoblin had in his

pockets, he removed the costume and Peter found the controls to the glider and shut it off. Peter wrapped all the weapons in webs and had black cat call the police. Peter

destroyed the controls to the glider. _No one should be able to use a weapon like this ever again. Poor Black Cat. She looks-astounding, this guy is a real jerk for jeopardizing _

_everything. _Peter lifted his mask and kissed Black Cat on the cheek. He wished Black Cat goodbye and she held her cheek where he had kissed her.

Peter didn't feel comfortable with Mark knowing where he was. Peter shot webs and began swinging in the direction of Mark's home. Peter felt exhausted and he realized he

had barely gotten any rest. Peter was a few blocks away from Mark's house when something burned Peter's back. Peter fell and tumbled on the roof of a building. _That was a _

_fireball, but how? Black Cat has the controls to Mark's molten skin. _Peter struggled to stand and made it to his knees when a man on fire flew onto the building. It was Molten

man and he was using his flames to elevate himself. "Mark. How are you on fire?!" Peter asked, bewildered. "I saw a doctor and now i'm molten _forever" _Mark said as he

laughed like a mad man. "Why would you do something like that to yourself?!" Peter asked. "To hurt you the way you hurt me. You took away the woman I loved. You let her

die, so i'm going to let you die" Mark said before firing lava balls. Peter barely made it to his feet, he rolled and jumped to dodge the incoming lava. The roof melted where

the lava had hit. "Mark, you still have loved ones, you still have your sister Liz, your friends and family. Stop letting revenge take over." Peter negotiated calmly. _Mark let _

_revenge change him. He must have had a mental breakdown. He's not a villain so I won't treat him like one. _Mark launched a volley of fire and Peter ducked to avoid it.

"Mark, I paid for your bail. I used my Bugle money because I saw the good human inside of you. I still believe that Mark Allan is in there. Revenge is never justified, I didn't

kill Mary Jane, the goblin d-" Peter was cut off. Mark turned his hands into a fiery whip and smashed Peter's stomach. Peter broke through the ledge of the building and hit a

street lamp. The lamp was bent and Peter fell onto the roof of A car. The windshield shattered and the car alarm went off. Peter's body ached and he was unable to move.

Molten man jumped down and launched a cluster of lava balls along with a fire fountain. Peter fired a web onto a building and pulled. The car he was lying on blew up and car

pieces flew everywhere. Peter's back burned with the embers of the explosion. He landed and stood on spaghetti legs. "Mark, I don't want to hurt you. Can we sort this out

any other way?!" Peter pleaded. Mark shook his head and made two whips of fire with his hand. Mark brought both his hands together in an attempt to squeeze Peter. Peter

jumped but he was extremely fatigued. His ankle was caught by the whip. Peter's face crashed into the ground. Mark shot fire balls and Peter tried to use his adrenaline to his

advantage. Peter rolled out of the way and shot webs at Mark's legs. The webs slowly burned and Mark spread out his hands. Embers flew everywhere within a 10 foot radius.

Peter held his arms in front of his face and felt as if he was going to melt. Peter felt dazed and Mark launched a massive fire ball into Peter's stomach. Peter flew back and

crashed into the brick wall of a building. Peter felt his life fading away from him. "Mark, I thought you were a hothead before, but look at yourself now" Peter teased. Mark

grew angry and launched lava at Peter. Peter shot a web at a street lamp and pulled himself out of the way. He located a fire hydrant in the next block. Peter swung webs

and Mark burned Peter's back with a coat of flames. Peter fell to the ground rolled awkwardly and dodged incoming fire. Peter shot webs at Mark's eyes. Mark yelled out and

Peter moved into the next block. He positioned himself to exterminate Mark. Peter stood groggily and waited. Mark flew and landed a few feet away from Peter. "It's over"

Mark said. "I know" Peter said. _For you. _Peter shot a web at the fire hydrant and pulled off the lid with incredible speed. The fire hydrant spewed water and Peter was ready.

Mark fired lava balls at Peter and Peter spun to dodge. Peter shot webs at Mark and pulled with his remaining strength. Mark was launched over the incoming water. Steam

arose and Peter continued to shoot webs at Mark. Peter made a net of webs so that Mark could not move away from the water. Mark's molten body was no longer on fire. _Get _

_extinguished._


	19. Chapter 19

Peter collapsed to the ground. His vision blurred and faded to black. When he woke up, he heard sirens and saw a face looming over his own. It was George Stacey, and he

was checking for Peter's pulse. Peter prayed no one unmasked him and he quickly sat up. His back throbbed from the sudden movement and George Stacey said "It's okay,

no one looked behind the mask". Peter relaxed and stood up with the help of George Stacey. "What are you doing so late? Your au-It's late" George Stacey said, correcting

himself. _What was he about to say? My aunt may be worried? Something is still bothering me... Did I secure the glider? Wait. It wasn't there after I secured the weapons. _

Peter felt as if he had one piece to a puzzle. He wished George Stacey goodbye but before he left, Molten Man asked to have a word. The cops allowed it and Molten Man was

escorted towards Peter. Molten Man was shivering and his body wasn't on fire, it was dark orange. "You-hou th-ink you won?" he said. He chuckled, "This was just a pawn in

our game of chess" Mark said. Peter was going to say something but the cops told him Mark was going to get hypothermia if he stayed without his molten skin for long. Mark

was taken away but Peter could not wrap his head around what was said. Peter swung away slowly and painfully. _I hate it when the villain knows something I don't. What _

_does he mean, I __didn't __win. I took hobgobby and him. _Peter felt frustration build but he forced himself to be calm. _Anger won't get me anywhere. Mark was definitely onto _

_something. 'This was __just a __pawn' meaning something else must be coming. Wait, George Stacey tells me my aunt might be worried, I don't remember webbing up the glider _

_and Mark is hinting __at __something. I have to check on aunt May! Maybe it was a diversion and someone else is onto this scheme. _Peter felt incredibly worried and felt

spiderman taking it's toll on him. As he swung through the city as fast as his tired arms willed, he thought. _The harder I work, the harder I have to work to maintain myself _

_and to move forward. _Then the voice of Uncle Ben scolded him. _Peter, it will only get easier once the job is done. We often have to sacrifice to preserve the things we hold _

_dear. To move forward, we must __work __harder than we thought was possible. You can do it, just remember, when things become difficult, we often don't think straight. Don't _

_lose hope, Peter, you will succeed. _Peter felt a surge of belief, a surge of perseverance coursing through him. He arrived at his home and he looked through aunt May's

window. To his dismay, no one was lying in bed. _No, please._ Peter climbed into the bedroom and walked up to the bed. The covers were pushed towards the middle of the

bed and it was empty. Peter felt like his heart stopped. Suddenly, Peter heard movement but his spider sense didn't go off. _Carnage, he never triggered my spider sense. _

Peter was ready to fight when the door opened. A woman in her sixties entered the room. She wasn't wearing her glasses and she was wearing slippers. _It's aunt May! _She

squinted and said "Peter?". Peter realized he was wearing his spiderman mask. He quickly took it off, and said "Yes aunt May". _She's not wearing her glasses, she won't be _

_able to tell. _"Oh dear me, you scared me. I thought I was going to get robbed. What are you doing up so late?" She asked as she walked and sat onto her bed. "Me, I was

having a bad dream, I came here to check on you and you weren't here. It's okay now" Peter said, glad his excuses were improving. "Oh okay, if you want, I can buy you a

night light" aunt May said. Peter almost laughed out loud. His cheeks grew red and he thanked her for her offer and declined. She got into bed and Peter put the covers over

her. _With great crime fighting comes great midnight __snacks. _He munched on the food in the fridge and realized; _if Aunt May wasn't the target-then that leaves only one _

_person. GWEN._ Peter pretended to walk to his room but he jumped out one of the windows. He dialed Gwen's number immediately. No answer. _Okay it is 4 am but Gwen _

_always picks up when I call her late. _Peter dialed again, multiple times and each call went to voice mail. _I was never any good at chess but I feel like I am not over reacting. _

_Something strange is definitely happening._ Peter dialed Gwen's number once more. He heard the sound of an answer. Except it wasn't Gwen's voice-it was Hobgoblin's. Peter

could not believe it. _Was it a setup?! Was that not the real Hobgoblin? _The voice said "If you want to see them alive, you report to times square. You have twenty minutes."

Hobgoblin said before laughing maniacally. _He said 'them', that means there is more than_ _one person being held. This is not the day everyone I care about dies. It's definitely _

_a trap, so I have to show up prepared. I have ample time._ Peter walked back to his house and crawled into his window. He turned on the light and he began working. He

started a stopwatch so he would know how much time he had. He would leave in about thirteen minutes so he would still have seven minutes to arrive. Peter worked on his

web shooters. He knew it was the only thing he could improve. He went in and out of the house, at incredible speed. He collected samples of metals and he tested each of

them. He began sweating from his work, so he took off part of his costume. _This may be spiderman's greatest battle. Winner take all. _Peter knew the stakes were extremely

high so he did not rest for a millisecond. When Peter finished, he effectively created webbing stronger than any metal on earth. Radioactive metal had limited effect on Peter's

new webs. Fire was not very effective, Peter was ready and he looked at the stopwatch. 15 minutes had passed. Peter felt annoyed that he hadn't watched the time carefully

and he suited up. Peter had many tricks up his sleeve and he hoped he was ready for anything. Peter swung to times square in under a minute. He looked around and his

spider sense went off. He turned and saw a flying object above one of the massive screens. Peter swung in the direction knowing that hobgoblin was waiting. Peter dodged

the blades that were thrown, he surrounded grenades with webbing to prevent them from doing harm. He catapulted himself and punched hobgoblin in the stomach, then in

the face. Hobgoblin retaliated with a zap from his fingers. Peter was hit and he fell onto the roof of a skyscraper. He felt his body stiffen and his blood turned cold. Across

from him in adjacent chairs, two women were sitting. In one chair, Black Cat sat with her head hanging down, her jumpsuit was ripped and her hair was disheveled. Black Cat

didn't realize Peter was there. In another chair Gwen was tied and strapped. She appeared unharmed but Peter didn't know how long that would last. She saw Peter and

screamed. "PETER!". He looked at her and yelled back "It's going to be okay. I won't let him hurt you." He didn't care that she had just revealed his identity. Whoever this

guy was, he probably already knew, considering the trap he had set up. Peter was lying down, paralyzed and his head was crushed by Hobgoblin's foot. Peter's vision blurred

and he coughed. _My dream. Me paralyzed, unable to do anything. IT IS NOT GOING TO END THIS WAY. _Peter looked to the ground and he saw his own blood. The hobgoblin

picked up Peter's head and clicked his tongue. "Tsk tsk tsk. Always playing the good guy" Hobgoblin said. Peter forced himself to move, he clenched his teeth and he willed

himself to move. His head hurt with concentration, he closed his eyes to focus. Hobgoblin let go of Peter's head. Peter forced it up and he managed to keep it up. His veins,

his muscles and his bones. Everything was being put to it's limit. _I will not lose Gwen. I will not lose Gwen. I will not lose Gwen. I will not lose Gwen. I will not lose Gwen. _

Peter looked towards Gwen and saw the terror in her eyes. Hobgoblin approached her and pulled out a gun. At this point, Peter couldn't take it. He managed to get to his

hands and knees. The hobgoblin didn't notice. The goblin whistled "jingle bells" as he walked up to Black Cat with a gun. He held it to her head and Peter was standing on his

knees, his hands were bleeding from having his nails sink in. Peter broke the paralysis and Hobgoblin turned to see Peter. Before anyone could react Peter shot the fastest

web he could muster. He shot another. He pulled and the gun came out of Hobgoblin's hands. The other web was attached to the face of the goblin. When Peter pulled, the

mask came right off. Peter was surprised because he saw a blank mask underneath. _Chameleon! I should have known! _Peter stood up and shot webs at chameleon. Peter

pulled and hit chameleon with his elbows. Black Cat was stirring and she looked up. Peter showed no mercy. Chameleon stabbed Peter in the stomach, Peter punched him in

the jaw. The adrenaline did not let Peter feel too much pain. Peter spun to dodge the lazers Chameleon shot. The glider came from behind Peter. It tried to impale him but

Peter turned and shot webs at it. Peter held onto the webs and flung the glider into a massive tv screen. The glider tried to turn to avoid impending doom but Peter had

thrown with a lot of force. The glider crashed into the screen and blew up. It was reduced to pieces of metal. Peter turned to see a boot. Chameleon kicked Peter in the face

and swung with a knife. Peter ducked and side stepped. He shot a web at the knife and pulled. Chameleon crashed into the ledge of the building and his mask cracked. Peter

picked up chameleon but chameleon zapped Peter. Peter's body crashed along the rooftop and he was lying in front of the two chairs. Gwen was sobbing uncontrollably and

Black Cat was barely awake. Peter could not allow anything to happen to them. Peter got up and was punched in the stomach. Chameleon kicked the back of Peter's head and

Peter shot a web pellet at Chameleon. Thanks to his upgraded webs, Chameleon was hit in the stomach and he collapsed to his knees. The webs were faster and stronger

than ever before. Chameleon reached and threw two knives at Peter. The knives were both a foot away from Peter but Peter turned quickly. _He wasn't aiming for me. _Peter

turned and shot the knives with webs. The knives were inches away from impaling Gwen and Black Cat. Both were petrified. Peter threw the knives away and turned to a

grenade inches away from his face. Peter instantly put a finger on his web shooter. This parted the web and made a net. The grenade was covered with webs and it blew up,

harming nothing. "Chameleon, why are you doing this?!" Peter yelled. "I was promised a handsome 500 million" he replied. Chameleon took out a pistol and time slowed.

Chameleon fired and Peter jumped in the way knowing Chameleon wasn't aiming for him. Peter was hit in the chest and he fell to the ground. He heard screams but his

senses were betraying him. Peter wanted to close his eyes but he knew if he did, he may never open them again. Chameleon aimed and shot again, this time at Gwen. Peter

watched the bullet carefully and shot a web at it. The bullet was deflected. Chameleon fired multiple times but Peter made a wall with webs. Chameleon began cutting

through the wall and Gwen was sobbing. Black Cat was terrified but she tried not to show it. Peter knew he had to make a last stand. He clenched his teeth and looked at

Gwen. _This is for you. _Peter stood up and jumped over the web wall. He saw chameleon swing. Peter dodged the blade and kicked it out of Chameleon's hands. Peter threw

the quickest punches he had ever thrown. Peter swung with his legs. He kicked Chameleon on the back of the head and then in the stomach. Chameleon tumbled onto the

ground. Peter walked very slowly. His insides were hurting. Chameleon teared open his costume. Peter saw what looked like christmas decorations and quickly realized how

wrong he was. Chameleon had grenades strapped to his chest and he held one out. Peter held out his hand and said "It does not have to be this way. If you end your life, it's

over, forever" Peter warned. Chameleon laughed hysterically._ Chameleon must have taken the goblin formula_. Chameleon held the grenade and pressed the

button on it.

**The next chspter is going to be the final chapter. Did you like it? Whether you liked it or not I would appreciate an honest review. Thank you for reading! **

**Also in chapter 17, Peter rolled up his sleeve because aunt May wanted him to. They were eating and it's proper to roll up your sleeves before you eat-I guess. Also occurred in spider-man (2002). **


	20. Chapter 20

**This is it. The final chapter of this series. I may start a new one but I realize juggling my work is a little demanding. I really appreciate the reviews, i've noticed some of my errors thanks to you, dafishindasea(that's a cool name by the way). Reading these reviews always puts a smile on my face, even if one person reviews it three times (you know who you are). If you want to contact me, you can private message me (still getting the hang of this). Thank you a ton for reading thus far and enjoy!**

Peter acted without thinking. He shot webs in an effort to prevent himself from burning to a crisp. Chameleon had pressed the button and an explosion covered Peter's field of

view. His webbing held but the force of the explosion pushed Peter back. Peter's mind was on one thing. _Is Gwen alright?! _Peter felt his costume and his body burn and he

was blown away. His head hit the ground along with the rest of his body. His vision failed him. Peter felt very light, had he passed out or had he passed away? Peter could not

be sure. He couldn't feel anything but a strange sense in his stomach. _Does this mean i'm alive? The fact that i'm still thinking is good-I guess. _Peter saw his memories. His

childhood, his parents and then his current guardians. He saw uncle Ben and him play baseball on a field. Peter's memory went to school, where Peter was bullied constantly.

Peter remembered the first day of high school. When he approached the lunchroom, the kids pointed in his direction and sneered. He was taunted repeatedly. Peter saw

himself losing his money for lunch and then being teased for doing well in school. Peter saw a group of kids prank him and humiliate him. The years went by and Peter was

bitten by a radioactive spider. Peter remembered his first time swinging through the city and then he remembered Uncle Ben's death. Peter's heart throbbed. The scene

shifted and then Peter witnessed Norman and Harry Osborne's deaths. He then saw Mary Jane fall to her death. Peter was on the rooftop and Chameleon set off a chain of

grenades. Peter felt helpless and completely desolate but his memories didn't stop. Peter remembered his valiant efforts to sweep crime off the streets of New York. He saw

his webbing and his catapult webs in action. He saw himself battle crime each day, rescuing those who were in dire need. Peter saw every criminal he ever knew, carnage,

venom, vulture, kraven, doc ock, hammerhead, tombstone, you name it. Peter remembered the maximum security prison and how he and Black Cat defeated the most

dangerous men in New York-twice. Peter remembered leaving cards labeled "Courtesy of Your friendly neighborhood spiderman". He re-experienced his struggles to balance

his social life, his emotional life and his crime fighting life. Peter saw the glorious news reports crediting spiderman for his bust on crime. _Being a hero is it's own reward._

Peter felt extremely accomplished. Then, he was in a suit and tie, in a courtyard under the moonlight. Peter saw the most wonderful being he ever knew. Gwen Stacey

danced with him. Peter remembered the smell of her shampoo, the sound of the ocean, everything. Peter felt warm inside. _Am I __in a coma? What if _

_i'm __falling, __what if I never wake u-stop. I'm spiderman, if i've made it this __far, I can make it until the end. Just because I don't know where the road ends, __doesn't mean I _

_park __the car. My life may have been extremely difficult at times but at the end of the day it is still my life. The good always overshadows the bad. If I let go of what matters _

_to me, i'm as good as dead. People count on me and there are things I have left unfinished. Rallying for justice, being with the girl of my dreams, I can't leave it behind. _

_Fighting to preserve harmony in my life-what better way is there to live?_

Peter's eyes opened and he saw red. Peter panicked, thinking that his eyes were bleeding. The wind blew and Peter realized his mask was torn

to shreds. Peter moved slowly and saw two worried faces looming above his own. Gwen looked terrified and Black Cat looked astonished. Peter chuckled and then coughed

painfully. "Ow" Peter whispered. They were still on the rooftop, more than half of it had collapsed. The area where Peter and Chameleon were standing-it was a distant

memory. Gwen wiped tears and hugged Peter as hard as she could. Peter felt his body ache excruciatingly and when he heard a crack he said "You may want to loosen your

grip". Gwen loosened her grip and said "You stopped breathing. I was so worried". She almost started crying but Peter rested his hand on her shoulder. "It's okay-he's gone-

right?". Black Cat nodded and said "There was nothing left of him, you almost fell off the building but we grabbed you. _That's why I felt queasy._ Peter gave a thumbs up and

winced as his shoulder throbbed. "That was a long day" Black Cat said, standing up slowly. Peter noticed she had a bruised eye and she was hiding her injuries. Peter's

stomach hurt and when he looked down, he saw a gunshot wound and a stab wound. _How the heck did I survive? _Peter's wounds weren't bleeding any longer so he stood up

cautiously. Pain shot through his body. The three stood side by side and Peter said "We won". The three looked unkempt and almost homeless because of their lack of sleep

and their disorganized attires. _The building is in poor condition but at least New York is safe. _Peter turned to Gwen "I had flashbacks and painful memories. I was losing

control of my emotions but then the good memories came. I remembered the struggles and the victories of spiderman. Then I remembered that night me and you were by

the shore. When I saw your face, I knew I had something to live for" Peter said. Gwen wanted to cry-tears of joy this time. Black Cat felt a pang of jealousy but she tried to

ignore it. _Those two were meant to be. They've already been acquainted, it seems. And spiderman appears to be just a young man. _Black Cat felt disappointed that her love

interest was younger than herself. She also felt impressed at the bravery that spiderman showed. "Lets get down from here, its 4 am" Peter said, pretending to check a watch

that wasn't there. Peter joked that one of them should take the elevator. Both girls gave him a dirty look. The elevator had collapsed long before. Peter told them to hang on

as he jumped off the building. They clung to him and Peter felt it extremely difficult to breathe. When they got to the bottom, Peter dropped them off and fell to his knees.

Black Cat and Gwen turned to look at him. He looked back at them but he took deep breaths. _My lungs need some rest. _"I'm taking a cab" Peter wheezed. Black Cat nodded.

She thanked him and took one last look at him. _Maybe it's not the physique, he just has a bold charm. _Black Cat left Peter and Gwen alone. Peter and her took a cab. The

cabby looked back at them "Some party eh?". "Yup" they agreed. Peter handed the cabby a slightly burned twenty dollar bill when they arrived. "You go straight to bed"

Gwen said. "You too" Peter said. "I am so not going to school tomorrow". Gwen laughed and kissed him. Peter smiled and he walked home. When he arrived, all the lights

were off. Peter changed his costume and snuck into the kitchen. He ate like a king before falling asleep on the table. Peter woke up with a sore body. Aunt May was in the

kitchen and Peter checked the time. _It's noon-meaning she let me stay_ home. Peter tried to run and hug aunt May but his injuries allowed a slow limp towards her. He

hugged her and she said "Good afternoon, I hope you've slept well". Peter grinned and munched on the breakfast she handed him. He dialed Gwen's number and she

answered instantly. "Hi, Peter, how are you?!" she said. "Great, what about you. Do you want to go to... where do you want to go?" he asked. "I was thinking we head to a

cafe and relax" she said. "Sounds great, just me and you?" Peter asked to make sure. Aunt May suppressed a smile. "Of course! Unless.. you want someone else to come"

Gwen said. "No-no way, i'll be at your house in twenty" Peter said. "Alright" Gwen said. "I love you, and you better be ready in twenty" Peter joked. "Maybe thirty, I love you

too" Gwen said. They exchanged goodbyes and Peter turned on the news. There was a reporter and she was talking about a skyscraper. Peter turned the volume up.

"Witnesses say a suicide bomber tried to harm spider man and two hostages. Our sources say both hostages survived and the remains of the suicide bomber have been

located. It appears to be a middle aged man, the n.y.p.d. confirms that the man goes by the alias of chameleon. The man is dead. This marks the 300th day Spider man has

been a part of new york city. What a milestone. Now for your weather". Peter leaped with joy and then cringed when his body throbbed. _Who cares about the weather? When _

_spiderman is in action, the skies are clear, the villains steer away and spiderman saves the day. Hey, that's kind of catchy. _Peter got dressed and he went to Gwen's house.

They took a cab to a cafe. But what Gwen didn't realize, Peter had already made a trip with spiderman. There was an outdoor umbrella set up with a table and chairs for two.

Peter smiled at Gwen, waiting for her to realize. The cafe was next to a rail and the ocean was just beside them. Gwen gasped when she saw it. Peter had written "I love you"

with webbing onto the Brooklyn bridge. "That's so sweet! I love you too" Gwen hugged him. They talked of school and how so much had happened. "The semester is almost

over, i'm glad I have the summer to rest." Peter said. "We should go upstate together" Gwen said. _Upstate New York doesn't even feel like New York anymore. It's like your _

_on a new __continent. How come I didn't come up with something like that?_ "That sounds good, the weather will be perfect" Peter said. _I could be on the moon with just Gwen _

_and I __wouldn't mind. _They talked endlessly and Peter ordered food. "Next year is going to be tough." Gwen said. "Not with the nutjobs we have for competition. I'm sure

you'll do well. There's nothing Gwen Stacey can't do. After all she won my heart. " Peter joked. Gwen smiled "As long as you're by my side i'll be okay". "Of course" Peter

said while holding her hand. Peter heard the walkie talkie of one of the police officers. "All units dispatch. The rhino has broken loose. He was being transported to the

ravencroft facility but an accident allowed him to escape. He's currently on the lower east side heading towards the north on 110th street." Gwen smiled at Peter "Kick some

Rhino butt" she said. Peter nodded, extremely glad to have a reassuring ally. He put the money for the food on the table and he ran to an alleyway. He unbuttoned his shirt

as he was in the alleyway. He put on his boots and pants. The spider insignia was revealed and Peter looked at it. _This is me. My gift, my curse. I am the protector of New _

_York. I made an oath to Uncle Ben and I will keep it until the day I die. I may be risking my life but i'm keeping my promise and i'm fighting for harmony. What better way is _

_there to live?_ Peter swung through the city and leaped onto a building behind Rhino. Peter swung from a web and kicked Rhino from behind. Rhino crashed into the wall and

Peter waited. Rhino turned and groaned "I wish I could retire". "Me too" Peter said. Rhino punched Peter into a car. Glass shattered and Rhino charged. Peter shot a web at

Rhino's horn and pulled it towards a building. Rhino hit a brick wall. Peter approached and Rhino lashed out with his elbow. Peter fell back but launched web pellets at Rhino.

"Ah ah ow those used to be weak" Rhino complained. "I cashed in my superhero upgrade rewards card. Of course it hurts now". Rhino grimaced and threw a car at Peter.

Peter ducked and shot a web to prevent the car from falling. Peter took off a fire hydrant and hit Rhino in the stomach with it. The Rhino tried to impale Peter with his horn.

Peter lurched to the side and avoided it. He put the fire hydrant on rhino's horn. "That way you don't look as suspicious. When your'e running away from the cops, a good

disguise will always help" Peter joked. The rhino roared and Peter kicked his knees. The rhino fell to the ground. Peter walked up to him but the Rhino threw the fire hydrant

into Peter's stomach. Peter tumbled on the pavement and Rhino tried to run into Peter. Peter shot a web onto a manhole and took the cover. Peter launched the manhole

cover at Rhino's face. Rhino was dazed and Peter made a wire of web just ahead of rhino's feet. "Over here rhino, what happened? Did I hit you too hard?" Peter asked. The

Rhino ran and fell for Peter's trap-literally and figuratively. The wire of web tripped rhino and his face banged against the floor. Peter shot webs at Rhino's arms and legs.

Then Peter put a web over Rhino's mouth and secured him to the ground. Peter dusted of his hands and said "Ahhh, life is good. Thank the lord." Peter swung through the

city and his muscles began aching. _It's going to be a while before I heal, i'll be careful. Still have to get back to Gwen. _As Peter swung through the city, he felt an

unmistakable sense of nostalgia. _The __buildings, the tourists pointing towards me, the skyline, even the criminals. All of it makes me remember who I am. Who am I you ask? _

_I am Spider-man._

**There you have it folks, the last chapter. Quick note, I love spider man and I truly feel he can be happy. Love is one of the few things that can help. I read the comics growing up and this is going to sound cheesy but the first comic series I ever read were the spider man ones (more than one series). I did enjoy writing the fan fiction a lot. It was time consuming but it really pays off to read a review after posting a chapter. Thank you guys for letting me dream of my own spider man story. I hope you liked it and I never imagined that people from around the world would read my work. I feel accomplished haha. May have incorporated a lot of my philosophy into this. Thank you for reading twenty chapters and thanks again for the wonderful reviews! Stay awesome! Make careful decisions and don't change who you are for someone else :D**

** Sincerely Dick Grayson, the boy wonder. **


End file.
